Warped Matter
by BookMage7
Summary: [Platinum Novelization] Dawn's never cared for gyms. In her opinion, they're nothing more than a bore set to appease rookie trainers. What she truly wants is to reach the Battle Frontier, and become the Frontier Conqueror. Unfortunately, fate is cruel, and she's forced do the things she despises most in order to reach her dreams: gym battles.
1. Chapter 1: Insufferable Boredom

**Frankly, I'm disappointed I have to say this, but whatever. If you're a part of the Farla vs Hybrid of Fate, please don't spam the the review sections or my PM's with 'warnings'. If you do so, I will not hesitate to block you. I've been on fanfiction long enough to know what's going on, and I don't need any 'advice' on who to block, and I certainly don't want to be involved in this crap.**

**With that out of the way, welcome to **_Warped Matter__!_

* * *

"I heard he found two new fossils that hadn't been discovered yet!"

"He's the new gym leader or Oreburgh too, isn't he!"

"Isn't he Byron's son too?"

"Aaaahhh! One of these days, I'm gonna pack up and go on a journey!"

Dawn tapped a pencil on her wooden desk, annoyance boiling up inside her. She brushed a couple dark strands of hair out of her face, and shot a glance at her babbling classmates. All of them were discussing the same topic: the emergence of the new Gym Leader Roark. Son of the successful Byron, Roark was quickly gaining ranks as a rising archaeologist and gym leader.

To put it simply, he was the talk of the town.

Dawn pressed her pencil hard into the desk at the sound of her classmates squealing about the gym leader's good looks. She sighed, and pulled her sharpener out of her bag. Thank goodness winter break was approaching. She couldn't think she could handle any more of her classmates' rambles about gyms. All of them talked about how'd they'd become a celebrity when they went on their journeys.

As if.

What was so great about gyms? A trainer specializes in a certain type, and you had to complete a simple puzzle to reach the leader. Nothing exciting about that. Bring a pokémon with a type advantage, and you'd walk out the gym twenty minutes later with a shiny badge to show off to your friends.

Dawn smiled, remembering the Battle Frontier. She twirled her pencil between the fingers, recalling all the information she had read on forums the past few days. The Sinnoh Frontier Brains weren't afraid to use different types and battle styles. Everyone had their own gimmick that forced you to be creative, and utilize skills unrelated to battling.

The Battle Frontier had opened recently, only allowing high-ranking trainers to participate thus far. However, there was an announcement that the Battle Frontier would be broadening its clientele, now allowing more trainers to come. That clearly meant that they would be opening it to the public, and she would be able to go!

Of course, there was the matter of convincing her mother to let her go and-

"Caught in another one of your fantasies, eh Dawny?"

Dawn's smile slipped off her face, and she tilted her head back to see an ever-familiar boy. "For the last time Barry, stop calling me Dawny."

Barry slid down into his seat next to her, grabbing his textbook. "Well, think of it as payback for all the times you called me the Berry Man back in kindergarten!"

"Barry, I was literally five!" Dawn replied, exasperated. "It was too good of an opportunity for a young me to pass up!"

Her childhood friend gave her cheeky grin, and Dawn groaned. Thankfully, the bell rang, ending the conversation. Their teacher attempted to get the classes attention, but it did little to quell the commotion in the front of the classroom. Finally, the teacher slammed her hands down on the desk, the resulting bang finally catching the student's attention. They quickly hurried to their desks, eyes on the ground.

The teacher grumbled something about kids, and pulled up a video. "We're watching the Lake of Rage footage today."

The class cheered, while Dawn merely rubbed her forehead. The video itself was a familiar one. Two people fought a pack of raging Gyarados' in a murky lake. The gyarados were uncontrollable, their pupils dilated and wide. One stood out for the rest, with gleaming blood-red scales. He seemed to be rampaging the most.

The monotone voice of the narrator came on, explaining the event. Team Rocket used radio signals to send the magikarp in the lake on an evolving rampage, all as an experiment. Pokédex Holders Lyra and Silver calmed the rampaging beasts, and exposed Team Rocket's deeds.

Dawn looked down at her nails. She'd seen this video over a dozen times this month. It was interesting the first few times, but it had quickly become more boring after repetitive views. She wasn't quite sure what this had to do with Geography either.

Maybe she could catch a nap...

Something sharp jabbed at her arm, and Dawn shot up. Whipping her head to her right, she saw Barry poking her arm with his pen, his orange eyes still glued to the screen.

Leave to Barry to never get bored from this video.

Once again, Dawn went back to tapping her pencil again, but this time it was out of boredom. The rest of the period was spent in immense boredom, time seeming to crawl at a horribly slow pace. The bell finally sounded through the air and Dawn breathed a sigh of relief. She grabbed all her books and threw them into her pink bag before she raced out the door.

Exiting the portable classroom, Barry soon surpassed her, laughing. "Even with a head start, you'll never beat me when running!"

"Well, if I had known we were going to race, I would have worn better clothes!" Dawn shot back, pressing down her navy uniform skirt in order to keep it from riding up.

Barry stopped running and turned to her, a sinister smile on his face. "Say Dawn, I want to become a master trainer, and you want to go to the Battle Frontier, right?"

Dawn nodded. "Yeah, and...?"

Barry looked at her as he stated. "We just watched a video on the Red Gyarados right? Well, what if there's one in Lake Verity?"

Everything was silent for a few seconds.

"...You've got to be kidding me," Dawn said, "Out of all the stupid ideas you've had, this one is the worst. You don't have any pokémon and you want to go catch a Gyarados of all things?"

"That's why I'm asking you to come with me," Barry answered, "You can bring your Staryu."

Dawn rubbed the bridge of her nose. "Barry, my Staryu is a water type. They can't take on a normal water type, much less a Gyrarados."

Barry waved his hand. "No, you don't understand! This is where my master plan comes in! You take your Staryu and distract it while I come in with the poke balls and catch it. Then we can show it off to our classmates!"

"...Goodbye Barry."

"DAWNY WAIT!"

* * *

Dawn stomped through the snow, cursing under her breath. In her hands was a glass capsule, containing her partner. In the distance, she could see the gate out Twinleaf Town, where Barry was tapping his foot impatiently.

How the heck did she get looped into this?

Right. Barry had said he would pay her money. How he had that much was beyond her. Regardless, she needed the funds to get to the Battle Frontier.

Upon reaching the gate, Barry ran up to her. "You're late Dawn! You'll need to pay me 2000 pd!"

"Sounds good," Dawn said blandly, "Lets go to that lake."

Barry nodded excitedly, and they both trudged through the thick snow towards Lake Verity, worn signs guiding them through the covered paths. Barry began to hum an old show tune, while Dawn had taken to looking at the snow-covered landscape.

They passed between an arch of snow-capped pine trees, and found themselves on the outskirts of the frosty. There were thin patches of ice covering the water, and as always, there was a large boulder in the middle of the lake.

At the edge of the water, there was an older man with deep blue hair wearing a gray suit. He was kneeling down on one knee on the shore, muttering something to himself.

"The flowing time, the expanding space... I will make it all mine... Cyrus Steel in my name. Until you awake, remember that name, legendary pokémon of the lake bed..."

'Cyrus' seemed to notice Dawn's and Barry's presence, and he turned his head. He stiffly walked towards them, his cold grey eyes boring through them.

"Move." he said.

Barry gulped, and shuffled aside to create a space for Cyrus to walk past. Dawn shot the man a weird look before she mumbled to Barry. "Well, that was freaking weird."

"Yeah." Barry answered.

Dawn shrugged, and walked towards the lake. "Well, let's get this over wi- eh?"

She appeared to be looking at something in the grass, and Barry quickly hurried over to see what was going on. There was a brown briefcase lying in the grass. It was perfectly pristine, not covered in any snow.

"You think it was that Cyrus guys?" Barry asked.

"I don't know," Dawn said, "We should probably leave it. I'd rather not talk to him again."

"Good point! Let's get on with my brilliant plan!" Barry shouted.

Dawn released her Staryu, both of them falling into position before the lake. Barry hopped towards the edge, his hands cupped over his mouth.

"HEY HEY HEY! C'MON GYARADOS! WE KNOW YOU'RE IN THERE!"

Dawn covered her ears, shooting a glance at her partner. "How did he end up like this Staryu?"

Staryu merely raised two of their orange appendages, as if they were shrugging.

Loud splashing was heard from the lake and Barry cheered, "Get ready Dawn and Staryu! I think it's working!"

The splashing noise grew louder as a shadow approached Barry. Staryu's red gem glowed, ready to blast the wild pokémon. However, the pokémon that emerged from the water wasn't a red gyarados. It wasn't even a blue one.

Barry, Dawn and Staryu all backed away as a furious golduck burst out of the water. He began to chase after Barry, who immediately took off.

"Barry, I think your shouting angered it!" Dawn yelled.

"Dammit, dammit, dammit!" Barry swore. "Staryu!"

Staryu jumped towards Golduck, attempting to stop it in its tracks. They shot off some water guns, but they had little effect on the pokémon.

Dawn looked around, searching for something that could help them. Her gray eyes landed on the briefcase on the ground. There must be something useful in there. She raced to it, and clicked the case open. Inside, there were two poke balls, with a third empty slot. Dawn quickly grabbed both of the poke balls, mumbling a quick apology to the owner of the briefcase.

"Barry!" Dawn shouted as she threw the poke ball at him.

Barry looked over, and caught the poke ball. He whipped around, and let a boisterous laugh. "HAHA! Try beating me with this!"

He threw the poke ball at Golduck, hitting him in the head. The poke ball opened up, leaving a small, blue penguin sitting on Golduck's face.

"Pip?" it peeped, hopping down onto the ground.

Dawn blinked. "That's Piplup. It's a water type right?"

"That's right," Barry said, "Me and him can still fight though. Piplup, attack!"

The blue penguin rolled its eyes, but followed Barry's order regardless. It dove towards Golduck, but unfortunately was swatted away. Dawn gulped and threw the other poke ball. A small, orange monkey flew out. It had a small flame on it's bottoms, and yellow hands.

It turned around to look at Dawn. "Chim?"

Dammit.

They had more pokémon to fight with now, but none of them could hold their own against a Golduck of all things. Chimchar was a fire type and Staryu and Piplup were water types, neither of which fared well against a water type like Golduck. Still though, they had to try.

"Staryu, confusion! Chimchar, attack!" Dawn shouted as she closed the briefcase.

The two pokémon dove towards the blue duck as Dawn picked up the briefcase. Barry whipped around and commanded, "Piplup, attack!"

Piplup followed his order and joined Chimchar and Staryu as they began diving at the Golduck from all different angles. Meanwhile, Dawn lugged the heavy case towards the fray. Golduck let out a wave of psychic energy, sending all of the other pokémon flying back. He ran towards Barry, ready to attack.

Barry stumbled back, but tripped over a tree root that was protruding out of the ground. He fell to the ground, and cursed loudly as he clutched his ankle in pain. The Golduck stood over him, ready to attack. Barry gulped.

CRACK!

Golduck fell to his knees, holding his head in pain. Above him stood Dawn, who hefted the briefcase in her hands. A gleam was in her eye, and she slammed down the briefcase again. Barry watched with wide eyes as Golduck collapsed face-first onto the ground. A large purple welt was present on the Golduck's head.

Dawn dropped the briefcase, and panted as she collapsed to the ground in a heap. "Let's never do that again."

"Agreed," Barry answered, also collapsing. "That Gyarados is not worth all the hassle."

Dawn let out a weak laugh, and turned her attention to her two partners. "Thanks for the assist, you two."

Chimchar and Staryu nodded, crawling to their feet. Barry picked up the poke ball containing Piplup.

He simply said, "Alrighty, now we just pop em' back in the box and we pretend that never happened."

"I am so dead."

Both Dawn and Barry whipped their heads around to face the exit of the lake. Standing at the edge of the clearing was a boy around their age. Like them, he was dressed appropriately for the weather with a blue winter coat, black pants, blue shoes, and a white scarf. A red beret was nestled on his slate grey hair, and his eyes were wide.

"Professor Rowan is not going to be pleased," he said.

Dawn swore.

The boy began to pace around, mumbling to himself. "First I leave the briefcase behind. Then when I return two random hooligans are battling with the starters. I am so dead.

His eyes fell on the Golduck. "What the heck is that?"

"It's a fainted Golduck?" Barry offered weakly.

"What did you _do_ to it?" the boy shot back.

Dawn sighed, and grabbed Piplup's poke ball from Barry's hand. She returned both pokémon, and placed them back into the briefcase. After snapping it shut, she carried it over to the boy.

Here you are," she said "You can return the pokémon to the Professor and we'll return home. Like Barry said, all of us can pretend this never happened."

"What never happened?"

The group of three now turned to see an old man in a winter coat and boots trudge through the snow towards them. "Who are these two Lucas?" he asked.

Lucas ran up to the old man as he apologized profusely. "I'm so sorry Professor Rowan! I came back here to retrieve the starters and when I walked in, I saw these two battling with them."

Professor Rowan looked at Dawn and Barry as he asked, "Why did you two take the starters?"

Barry began speaking at the speed of light. "YouseemeandDawnhereweretryingtocatch-"

Dawn cut him off. "What he's trying to say is that he accidentally angered a Golduck, and my Staryu didn't have the strength to defeat. We, er, borrowed the starters for the time being to attempt to defeat it."

Professor Rowan examined the two before turning to Lucas. "Lucas, let out the starters."

Lucas did as he asked and knelt down. He unclicked the briefcase, and took the two poke balls out. Upon being released from their poke balls, Piplup and Chimchar looked around their surroundings before hopping over to Dawn and Barry.

The old man's reaction shifted slightly as he hummed, "I see. You have already imprinted on them. To take them away from you would be cruel."

Barry blinked in surprise as he asked, "So... your saying we can keep them?"

"Yes, but on one condition," Professor Rowan stated, "Those two starters were meant for the Sinnoh Pokédex Project."

"Sinnoh Pokédex Project?" Dawn questioned as Chimchar hopped onto her shoulder, "You mean Sinnoh's going to get Pokédex Holders as well?"

"Yes. The project was a success in other regions, so Samuel decided to try it here in Sinnoh," Professor Rowan said, "In exchange for the starters, you will participate and help complete the Sinnoh segment of the National Pokédex."

"WE'LL DO IT!" Barry screamed.

Dawn turned to Barry, and stated, "You made up your mind rather fast."

"This is an awesome opportunity though Dawn!" Her childhood friend yelled, "All of the previous eleven Pokédex Holders ended up doing amazing things!"

Dawn sighed. She was going to do the project whether she liked it or not, since she didn't want to abandon Chimchar. Perhaps this was a good opportunity though. She wanted to go to the Sinnoh Battle Frontier. She could use this project as an excuse to go on the journey to Snowpoint City.

"So, what's your answer Dawn?" Lucas asked.

Dawn lifted her head and smiled. "I've made up my mind. I'll do the project."

* * *

**First story, yay!**

**I'm trying to write Dawn a bit differently then other iterations (namely, Dawn from the anime, Platinum from Pokespe and Mitsumi from the DP Adventure Manga), with her being obsessed with the Battle Frontier instead of contests or gym battles, with a sorta close-minded approach towards gym battles. I used the Diamond/Pearl events of getting your starter, but this story is going to follow the plot of Platinum.**

**At the moment, Chapter 2-5 are mostly drafted, so I hope I can post again soon :)**

**For the time being, I hope you enjoy Warped Matter!**

**~Book Mage~**


	2. Chapter 2: Assumptions

Things moved rather quickly after she said yes. Professor Rowan had given them instructions to meet him in two days to talk about the Sinnoh Pokédex Project. He had given the poke balls that Piplup and Chimchar belonged to. Afterwards, he and Lucas took their leave.

Barry whipped around, a smile on his face. "Now that that is all said and done, lets battle!"

"What?" Dawn asked as she returned Staryu to her poke ball.

"C'mon Dawny, this is my first pokémon!" Barry yelled. "I'm raring for a battle!"

"I suppose it's an alright idea to try fighting with Chimchar," Dawn said. "Should we do this right away though?"

"C'mon, let's fight! Piplup!" Barry shouted as he pointed at Dawn.

"Fine. Chimchar! Lets try our hardest!" Dawn yelled.

The two pokémon sized each other up as they stood on opposite sides on the field. Dawn flicked her hand. "Use scratch!"

Chimchar dove towards Piplup, it's hands outstretched and ready to scratch at it with his sharp nails. He raked his claws against Piplup's face, gouging it. Piplup's reaction was immediate. She clutched her face, and let out a screech.

Barry pumped his fist, whooping, "So this is what a battle feels like! So much adrenaline is coursing through both of us! Piplup, use Growl! I know you can do it!"

Piplup let out a loud shriek, and Chimchar stopped on his tracks, clutching his head. He winced, and seemed to become unfocused. Dawn clenched her jaw. Right. Growl would lower Chimchar's attack.

She can't- no, she _wont_ lose to her childhood friend who had never battled before.

Still though, she had a disadvantage due to the thick snow on the ground. The flame on Chimchar's bottom was melting the snow around him, leaving small puddles everywhere. The second Chimchar moved, his wet feet would freeze, not doubt hurting him. She would have to try to use something else to her advantage.

Her grey eyes flicked to the pine trees that lined Twinleaf Town. A smile snaked its way onto her face. "Chimchar, climb that tree!"

Chimchar nodded, and hopped over to the tree. He easily climbed up the thin branches, his claws gripping the thick bark perfectly. Soon, he reached a high branch, which he precariously balanced on.

Barry looked up, and he asked, "What're you trying to accomplish?"

Dawn grinned. "This. Chimchar, scratch!"

Chimchar flew off the tree as he dived towards Piplup, tackling it to the ground. He then scratched at her ferociously. Piplup squealed in pain from both the dive tackle and the scratching, her wings flailing and smacking Chimchar's body uselessly.

Barry gulped, "Piplup, use growl again!"

The water type let out another loud shriek, and Chimchar slowed his attack just long enough for Piplup to wriggle out of his grasp. She backed away, and glared at the opponent who had ruffled her fur and clawed up her face.

"Piplup, pound!" Barry yelled.

Piplup slammed head first into Chimchar, who in turn was sent flying into a tree trunk. Some snow and branches rained down onto his head, which no doubt added insult to injury.

Dawn bit her tongue. "Critical hit. Dammit. You alright Chimchar?"

Her partner stood up while nodding and Dawn said. "Alright then. Chimchar, grab that tree branch and set it on fire with your tail."

The fire type followed her orders and grabbed a fallen stick. He lit it on fire, and brandished it like a burning baseball bat. Piplup yelped and backed away. Barry furrowed his brow.

He turned to Dawn, a mildly disturbed expression on his face. "You know, you're really weird when it comes to battles. Did you always do this kinda stuff with Staryu?"

"Eyes on the battle Barry!" Dawn yelled. "Chimchar, hit Piplup with the stick!"

Chimchar ran forward and swung the branch at Piplup which sent it flying back. The water type Pokemon collapsed to the ground. That attack, combined with the dive tackle and the scratches caused her to finally pass out.

"Nice Chimchar!" Dawn shouted as she pumped her fist.

"Good job Dawn," Barry admitted as he returned Piplup. "This was my first battle though. I'll get better and beat you one day!"

"We'll see about that!" Dawn yelled as she returned Chimchar.

* * *

"Welcome to my home Chimchar!"

Dawn kicked open the door to her house, sending a shower of snow spraying across the floor. Chimchar peered from behind her shoulder, his eyes widening at the new surroundings.

"Not super big," Dawn hummed. "But it's perfect for me and Mom."

She kicked off her old boots, and took off her pink coat. There was the scent of cooking food in the air, and Dawn's stomach grumbled. All of that running around and battling had made her hungry.

"Hey Mom!" she yelled. "I got a pokémon from the Professor!"

There was a loud clang from the kitchen, and Johanna came running out. "Really?"

She stopped at the sight of Chimchar on Dawn's shoulders. Her hands slapped her cheeks, and she cooed. "No way! He's adorable Dawn!"

"He's called Chimchar," Dawn said. "I got it in exchange doing this Pokédex Project thing."

Johanna's eyebrows shot up. "A Pokédex? Those only exist in Kanto-Johto and Hoenn."

"Not anymore," Dawn replied, "In exchange for completing the Pokédex, I can travel the region and keep Chimchar."

Johanna placed her hands on her hips. "And I presume you did this without my permission?"

Dawn gulped. "Erm, I suppose so."

Johanna was quiet for a moment, but then spoke up. "Well, every girl wants to leave home at some point. You've wanted to go to the Battle Frontier for a while now, haven't you? I guess it'll be fine. When are you leaving?"

"After New Years," Dawn replied. "Professor Rowan told me to come to his lab in two days."

Johanna nodded. "I see. Well, you'll want to show Chimchar around, no? And have him meet Staryu and Glameow. I'll continue making dinner. You better fill me in on your little adventure with Barry though."

"Will do Mom," Dawn said, giving her a thumbs-up. "Let's go Chimchar."

She walked up the stairs, and opened the door to her room. Chimchar hopped off her shoulder, running through her cramped living space. He looked at her television and gaming console (game cases were still strewn about the floor), then hopped to her PC (still open on a school assignment she had to finish).

Afterwards, he jumped onto her pink bed, bouncing on the box spring. He paused to look at her bulletin board, which was covered in pictures. Dawn laughed, and picked him up so he could get a better look.

Chimchar gazed at one photo in particular. In her was Dawn and her mother, both smiling at the camera. One side of the photo was tattered, the other half nowhere to be seen. Dawn's smile dimmed slightly, and she set him back down.

"How about we play on my PC for a bit?" she said, turning away from the photograph.

* * *

Dawn smiled as she stepped into Professor Rowan's lab. Truth to be told, despite passing by it on her way to school, she had never actually gone into the lab before. Beside her, Barry shifted excitedly as Lucas led them towards Professor Rowan.

Professor Rowan turned around upon hearing their approach, and said. "Ah. Dawn and Barry isn't it?"

Both of them nodded and Professor Rowan grabbed two devices off the desk. They appeared to open and snap shut, and there was a small green circle sticking out on the side. One of the Pokédexes was orange while the other was red. Dawn thought that was rather convenient seeing what her and Barry's main colour schemes were.

Professor Rowan handed the red one to her, and Dawn opened the glossy case, admiring the dual screens which showed a small list of pokémon they could catch. Turtwig, Piplup and Chimchar were already registered in it, but the rest of the entries were merely a series of question marks.

Both her and Barry bowed. "Thank you Professor Rowan!"

Professor Rowan nodded, and looked down at the starters that were walking alongside the young trainers. "Your pokémon seem quite happy to be with you. Would you like to give them a nickname?"

"I don't think I will. What about you Dawn?" Barry asked.

Dawn glanced at Chimchar, who shook his head. "I don't think so either."

Professor Rowan hummed. "When I first walked into the forest and saw you two battling with the starters I was shocked. I thought you two were foolish trainers who had taken the pokémon.

"But I was wrong," he continued. "You two seem to be good trainers judging by how you two already bonded with the starters."

He walked over to the now empty lab table and continued. "Regardless, New Years is coming up. I suppose you three will want to wait until after that to leave."

Lucas nodded in agreement and added. "Agreed. How about you two meet me on the second of January, ten o'clock so I can teach you how to catch pokémon?"

Barry and Dawn looked at each other before shrugging. "Sounds good." Barry said.

"See you then." Dawn added.

Dawn hummed to herself as she marked down routs on her brand-new town map she recently bought from the Sandgem Pokémart. It clearly marked every major city in Sinnoh, as well as important landmarks. Chimchar was sitting on her shoulder, watching her work, while Staryu was sitting on her desk.

"Let's see," Dawn said. "Can we take the Eterna Path up to Snowpoint? I can't seem to recall. What do you guys think?"

Chimchar looked confused, and Staryu shrugged. Dawn scratched her head. "Well, I'd rather not spend too much time in Mount Coronet. It's easy to get lost in there. I guess I'll play it by ear as we go."

There was a light tap on the door, and Dawn looked up from her work. "Come on in!"

The door opened to reveal Johanna with a package in her hands. She gave Dawn a warm smile. "It finally came in the mail!"

"Huh? What came?" Dawn asked.

Johanna hummed, and walked to the middle of the room. She placed the package on the floor, and beckoned to Dawn to open it. Dawn snatched up a pair of scissors from her desk, and carefully cut through the tape sealing.

Inside was a pair of pale pink boots. Dawn smiled. "Hey, new winter boots! Thanks Mom! These'll be great when I head up to Snowpoint!"

"Well, I thought they'd be a nice going-away gift," Johanna laughed, scratching her neck. "Be sure to call every now and then, alright?"

"Will do Mom!" Dawn shouted, giving her mother a hug.

* * *

_Two weeks later..._

"Oh, it's hard to believe how time flies!" Johanna hummed as she tightened the white scarf around Dawn's neck. "It feels like yesterday you were nothing but a child!"

"Mom..." Dawn mumbled, embarrassed. She was wearing her hot pink coat again, and the new pink boots on her feet.

Johanna let out a breathy laugh. "Sorry! It just feels like everything is moving so fast these days. Be sure to call every now and then, okay? I already packed your bag with some supplies."

"Thanks," Dawn said. "I'll miss you Mom."

Johanna gave her one last hug, and she said. "Have a good time on your journey Dawn. I know you want to reach the Battle Frontier, but be sure to stop and smell the roses every now and then."

"I know Mom," Dawn replied. "I just want to get there as soon as I can."

She left her home, Johanna waving goodbye as she left. Dawn walked over to Barry's house, where she began to wait outside. Even outside the house, she could hear Mrs. Jun wailing as she kissed Barry goodbye. It took a few more minutes, but Barry eventually came out of his house, his blond hair all ruffled.

Dawn opened her mouth to say something, but Barry raised a hand. "Not a word. Let's just go find Lucas."

Dawn closed her mouth, and they began walking towards Sandgem. They had to battle a couple pokémon here and there, but they soon reached the place where Lucas was waiting. He looked exactly the same as he did the last time they saw him, only with a white backpack now strapped across his shoulders.

"Good morning," Lucas greeted. "Are you ready to go?"

Barry and Dawn nodded, and the trio walked towards the wild grass. Lucas was in the lead, and he pulled out a poke ball for his demonstration. He stepped into the wild grass and a wild Bidoof appeared, oblivious about what was about to happen.

Lucas threw a poke ball and a small, green turtle flew out. The pokémon began chewing on some of the grass, pretending to be inconspicuous.

"First, you weaken the pokémon," Lucas said. "Turtwig, tackle!"

Turtwig slammed into the normal-type, sending it flying back. Lucas pulled an empty poke ball out of his bag. "Once the pokémon is weakened, you throw a poke ball!"

He threw the poke ball and the capsule hit the Bidoof in the head. It was sucked into the ball and shook rapidly for a couple seconds as the opening mechanism glowed red three times.

The capsule let out a loud click and Lucas walked over to grab it. "That's all there is to it."

Dawn clapped as Barry nodded. Lucas walked over to them and said. "You should probably weaken the Pokemon if you want to have a better chance of capturing them. Do you guys have poke balls?

Barry nodded vigorously as he began running in place and speaking quickly. "Yep! Thanks for the lesson, I gotta go catch some Pokemon! See ya later Lucas and Dawny!"

He took off running through the route as Lucas asked. "Is he always like that?"

"Unfortunately, yes." Dawn answered.

The two of them began to walk through the route, plowing through any wild pokémon in their path. There was an awkward silence save for the shouted commands, and Lucas coughed.

"So, you have a Staryu, right?" he said. "They're not native to Kanto."

Dawn looked down at her bag, where Staryu's polished poke ball was clipped onto. "They were a gift from my Dad."

"He travels?" Lucas asked.

"...Sure," Dawn muttered. "He's constantly all over the place. Staryu was a gift from him."

Sensing Dawn's unease, Lucas changed the subject. "Are you excited to fill in the Pokédex?"

Dawn shrugged. "Yeah. It'll be fun I suppose. I'm guessing that's your main goal."

Lucas nodded. "As his assistant, it's my job to. My Dad's one of his fellow researchers, and he managed to get me this job.

He looked up into the sky. "Not to brag, but I'm talented when it comes to capturing pokémon. That's part of the reason why I got the Pokédex."

"Cool," Dawn replied. Do you want to be a pokémon researcher?"

"I'm unsure about what I really want to do, to be honest," Lucas answered. "What about you?"

"Oh, that's simple. I want to go to the Battle Frontier." Dawn said.

"You do? I assumed you would be doing gyms." Lucas answered.

Dawn took a deep breath. "You know, I am very glad you asked me that."

Lucas immediately regretted his answer.

"Firstly, gym's aren't that fun," she began. "They are all based around a single type, and if you bring in a strong pokemon with a type advantage, you can sweep them!

"They all have the same battling style, either single or double battles," she continued stepping into the wild grass. "Chimchar, ember on that Bidoof, then scratch!"

Chimchar's palms lit up, sending some small flames sputtering towards the bidoof, setting it's brown fur ablaze. A few quick scratches to the face, and the bidoof collapsed on the ground.

Stepping over the fainted Bidoof, Dawn continued. "Then, there's what happens if you become Champion by beating all of the gyms! Do you want to be in charge of a region at age sixteen!? Nope!"

Lucas had to admit she had a good point there.

"And did you see what becoming Champion did to that Red guy?" she continued. "The press completely destroyed his life! For all we know, he's still chilling in some hole, hiding away from them!"

Also a fair point, Lucas had to concede.

"And is there any damn reason why the gyms have to be so far away!" Dawn shouted. "Like, you've got four towns who have gyms all in them, then you just got one that's way up north, and then the one where the gym leader barely works!

She crossed her arms. "The Battle Frontier is way more exciting. Whether it be spinning Dahlia's roulette wheel or renting pokemon, I'd pick the Battle Frontier over gyms any day."

The rant continued like this until the pair of them reached the end of the route, where Barry was already impatiently waiting for them. Lucas had to admit, he was mildly impressed by the sheer vitriol Dawn held for gyms in general.

"...And that is why I hate gyms so much!" Dawn finished as they walked up to Barry.

"Well, I will admit you've presented decent reasons." Lucas replied. He mentally made a note to never ask Dawn about gyms again.

Barry smacked his forehead in exasperation. "Dawn, did you deliver the Rant to him?"

"He asked for it!" Dawn defended. "He should've known what he was getting into."

"It freaks people out!"

"So!? Your point!?"

"Let's just continue north," Lucas said, getting in between the two of them. He then muttered, "How Professor Rowan thought these two were good picks is beyond me."

Dawn and Barry didn't seem to hear him, and they calmed themselves down. They continued north into Jubilife City, drinking in the sights before them. It was a huge metropolis unlike their own sleepy town. Jubilife was packed to the brim with tall buildings and people. In the center of the town was the acclaimed Pokemon Trainer School.

"Jubilife City," Barry hummed. "Now we can split off in any three directions. Either way, I'll reach a gym."

Dawn smiled. "I'm gonna go straight north, to Snowpoint."

"You better be careful then," Lucas warned. "The Pokemon up there are pretty powerful."

"I know," Dawn replied. "I'll thrash some trainers on the way up. It'll be fun. What about you?"

"Probably going to just mill around the area, and catch some pokémon," Lucas replied.

His grey eyes wandered to a nearby telephone pole. His eyebrows scrunched. "Is that a man hiding behind a streetlight?"

Barry and Dawn turned to see that there was indeed a man standing behind a streetlight.

"That's... odd." Dawn said. "We're gonna avoid him."

"That trench coat makes him look like he's part of the police!" Barry yelled, completely ignoring the other two.

Within seconds, the trench coat man was in front of Barry. Both Dawn and Lucas immediately backed up, but Barry's eyes sparkled.

"WHAT! How did you know I was a member of the International Police!" the man shouted.

"You're part of the Interpol?" Dawn asked as she looked at the man.

"INDEED! My name is Agent Looker!" the man yelled. "I have been assigned to investigate crimes that have been plaguing the region!"

"Crimes have been plaguing the region?" Barry asked.

Lucas looked at the two of them before he sighed, "Do you two even watch the news?"

"Of course we do!" Barry yelled. "I can perfectly recite every line from the Gyarados sighting that was on Sinnoh Evening News."

"Now now," Looker said, regaining their attention. "I have therefore been on a lookout for the character's arousing suspicion. You are trainers right? Then you can make use of this."

He handed all three of them a blue device. Barry fiddled with the buttons, blinking as it turned on. "What's this?"

"It's a Vs. Recorder," Looker explained. "It records matches you compete. It is quite useful."

Dawn pumped her fist as she yelled, "Thank you! People at the Battle Frontier use this all the time!"

"Ah, Battle Frontier?" Looker asked, "So you're a trainer? Are you going to do gyms?"

His face immediately paled as Dawn swelled up, ready to explode in a rant. Lucas looked at the older man before he gravely said, "Escape while you can."

* * *

"Seriously Dawny," Barry sighed, "You've gotta learn to not blow up when people mention gyms."

"Agreed," Lucas said. "As interesting as the subject is, I've heard enough about your opinions for one day."

"They're just so OVERRATED!" Dawn shouted as she waved her arms.

"Dawn, you should put arms down," Lucas said. "If you're not careful, you're-

Dawn smacked a man in the face, and Lucas weakly finished, "-going to hit someone."

"Oh crap, I am so sorry!" Dawn shouted at the man, lowering both her arms.

"It's alright miss," the man answered, holding his cheek. "You seem to be rather passionate about the subject you're talking about."

"I want to go to the Battle Frontier!" Dawn said as she pumped her fist.

The man smiled. "Ah! Then you'll need to know type matchups won't you?"

"I suppose so." Dawn admitted.

"Then you'll need a POKETCH WATCH!" the man yelled as he whipped out his arm. On it was a shiny, blue watch.

"...A what now?" Barry asked, completely confused.

"Ah!" Lucas said, "I knew I've seen you somewhere before. You're the leader of the company who makes Poketches aren't you?"

"This man has some taste!" the Poketch President praised, "I own the company."

"Oh," Barry said, drawing out the word, "I see. That's pretty cool."

"Indeed it is!" the Poketch President said, "How about this. I'll give you all a Poketch, if you can find all three clowns hiding in this city."

"We'll do it!" Dawn shouted, pumping her fist. "Divide and conquer! Barry east, Lucas west! I'll go north!"

Barry and Lucas nodded, and ran off in their respective directions. Dawn herself took off to the north, shoving past crowds of students and tourists. In the front of the television center stood a man in a puffy yellow clown suit and hat, complete with a red nose.

After kicking past a couple more tourists (and ignoring their annoyed shouts), Dawn reached the man. She pointed at him.

"You! I'm here for the promotion!"

The clown smiled, and held up a card. "Excellent! Let's roll out my designated question. Does a pokemon grow by defeating others and gaining experience?"

"Of course they do!" Dawn answered confidently. "How else would they grow?"

"Ding ding!" the man shouted. "You're correct. Some pokemon can even evolve if they gain enough experience. Here's your coupon!"

He handed her a slip of paper stamped with the seal of the Poketch Company. Dawn grinned. "Now, to head back!"

* * *

Barry sprinted through the city, looking for the clown. He hadn't seen any yet. Well, any of the right ones. He may have accidentally harassed a street clown.

But no one had to know about that.

His heart rate jumped upon seeing another clown. "THERE!"

He early slammed into the clown before he skidded to a stop just in time. "I'm here for the Poketch campaign! Are you the right clown!?"

"Ding ding!" the clown answered. "Here's my question! Can a pokemon hold an item?"

"Of course!" Barry yelled. "That's one of the first things we learned about battling!"

"DING DING!" the clown screamed back as he handed Barry a coupon. "HERE YA GO!"

* * *

"Ah, there he is."

Lucas calmly stepped towards the yellow clown, having noticed the Poketch on their wrist. "My name is Lucas. I'm here for the Poketch campaign."

"Right! Here my campaign question. Just like pokemon types, do the moves of pokemon also have types?" the clown asked.

"Of course," Lucas answered as he raised his index finger, "There are currently seventeen types, with a study being conducted to confirm an eighteenth. Each move has a certain type.

Not noticing that the clown was holding out a coupon, Lucas continued. "According to the STAB study, if the move type is the same as the Pokemon they get a boost."

The clown's hand began waving back and forth, trying to catch his attention.

Lucas added, "Now, moves are also divided into three categories: physical, special and status. They-"

"Okay, okay!" the clown cut Lucas off, shoving the paper into his face. "Here's your coupon!"

* * *

The three trainers met back up in front of the Poketch owner, coupons in hand. The Poketch Owner clapped his hands together.

"Very nice! I see all three of you answered the questions correctly!"

He pulled out three Poketchs from his briefcase. "Here you all go! A cool blue for the calm boy, a bright orange for the fiery boy and a classy red for the determined young lady."

"Thank you!" Dawn said as she attached the Poketch to her pink coat sleeve.

"Cool!" Barry shouted. "Thanks!"

"I appreciate this a lot. Thank you." Lucas said as he clicked the device onto his blue sleeve.

"Be sure to stop by when we release more apps!" the owner yelled as he waved goodbye.

"Man, this adventure's been wild so far, and it's only day one!" Barry cheered. "What're you guys gonna do!"

"Most likely stay around here, and capture some pokémon," Lucas stated. "The Pokédex isn't going to fill itself."

"I'm heading straight north," Dawn said. "I want to get to the Battle Frontier as soon as possible."

"I'm going straight to Oreburgh, where Roark awaits!" Barry cheered. "I'd love to check out Jubilife too though. Maybe I'll spend some time here after getting the first badge."

Dawn looked around the city. It was indeed large, but there wasn't anything that would benefit her at the moment. Trainer School was only open to a select few, and the famed television station didn't have much to offer.

She shrugged. "Well, see you two later! I've gotta get to Eterna."

With that, Dawn walked off, heading towards the northern exit of town. Lucas watched her leave, a confused expression on his face.

"Should we tell her that it's faster to go through Oreburgh?" he said.

"What are you talking about?" Barry questioned as he furrowed his brow.

Lucas turned to look at Barry before he explained, "Don't you have to take the Hearthrome Path to get to Snowpoint? You can go north, but you go in a loop to Oreburgh."

Barry looked thoroughly confused, processing what Lucas said. He slapped his forehead. "HOLY CRAP! DO YOU?"

* * *

**Hey! I'm back! Welcome to Chapter 2 of **_**Warped Matter! **_**When looking back at this chapter I realized that you have to take the Hearthrome Path through Mount Cornet to Snowpoint. Completely forgot that part.**

**~Book Mage~**


	3. Chapter 3: A Rather Large Setback

**Hello again! **

**Sorry for the delay. This chapter ended up being a lot longer than I intended, and the last week has been busy. Same goes for the next two weeks, so it may be a bit before I can update again. Next, the reviews, since I forgot to do that last chapter.**

**BadKitty17 (Chapter 1): Thanks! I'm glad you're enjoying their characterization!**

**the willyrex (Chapter 2):** **Yeah, I do agree with you. Looking back, I did rush through Jubilife City, and I hope that this chapter did a better job on the travels and interactions. As for the shipping... Yeah I have no idea. I usually lean towards male ****protagonist****/female ****protagonist**** in the pokemon games, but the Sinnoh Trio overall has always had great chemistry with each other. So yeah, who knows where the shipping will go this. I'll keep Dawn/Lucas in mind though.**

* * *

The first thing Dawn noticed upon entering the route was the immense amount of grass, and the droves of trainers and their partners running around. Cracking her knuckles, Dawn released Chimchar from his poke ball, and entered the wild grass.

Right away, a young girl ran up to her. Her brown hair was neatly pinned back, and she had a deep blue coat worn over an outfit that Dawn recognized as the Joy school uniform. She raised an eyebrow, as it was in the middle of a school day.

There was an excited gleam in the lass' eyes, and she hummed. "I'm Sarah! I haven't seen you around here before. Can we battle?"

"Of course!" Dawn replied, a grin curving onto her face. "Let's try our hardest! Chimchar!"

Chimchar sprung forward, while the lass released a bidoof. It skipped onto the ground, clearly happy to battle someone new for once.

"Chimchar, use ember!" Dawn shouted.

The pokémon in question opened it's mouth and sputtered out some small flames. The flames managed to hit Bidoof, and she tried her best to put out her now-smoking coat by rolling around on it's back.

"Bidoof, use tackle!" Sarah yelled.

Bidoof brushed itself off, and he sprung forwards, hitting Chimchar. The latter scrambled back, catching itself. Bidoof skipped back to stand next to Sarah, humming the whole way.

"Chimchar use scratch!" Dawn said.

Sarah flicked her hand. "Bidoof, tackle again!"

The two pokémon dove towards each other at the same time, and Bidoof knocked Chimchar to the ground. The two began rolling all over the ground, Chimchar clawing at Bidoof with his sharp nails. Eventually, Bidoof wriggled away, and jumped back, deep scratches all over his body. Chimchar stumbled towards him, bruises already beginning to show on his body.

"Chimchar, ember!" Dawn shouted.

Chimchar spat flames out of it's mouth, and this time successfully set Bidoof on fire due to the close range. Bidoof managed to put the flames out again, but the damage was done. He fell to the ground unconscious.

Sarah sighed, and returned her bidoof to it's poke ball. She pulled some loose change out of her purse, and handed it to Dawn. Dawn continued on, battling the two others trainers that presumably snuck out of school as well (they both had the school uniforms on).

After all that battling, Dawn finally managed to reach the cave that lead to Floaroma Town. She turned a corner, ready to head up the small ramp to the exit, when she found a rather unpleasant surprise.

There was mass of jagged rocks that completely blocked off the exit to the tunnel. By the look of things, neither Staryu and Chimchar had the strength to shatter the rocks. Dawn kicked the solid rock, and murmured a curse under her breath.

"You're blocked too?"

Dawn turned to see a portly older man in worn hiking clothes and a matching walking cane approaching her, coming from the other path in the cave. A small bronzong was floating by side, and a shellos was on his shoulder. There was a sad expression was on his face, and he looked at the blockade mournfully.

"I just wanted to reach Floaroma Town to see my grandchildren," he said sadly. "But I don't have any pokémon that can break these rocks."

"Neither do I..." Dawn grumbled. "I wanted to make it to Mount Cornet."

The hiker sighed, and he sat down on a nearby rock. "I've been waiting around here for a trainer that can break these rocks. I've already talked to my son and grandchildren, and they've told me that Floaroma is completely blocked off. Name's Harold."

"I'm Dawn," Dawn said. "Why is it blocked?"

"I'm not too sure," Harold replied. "Eric refuses to tell me why, and just says that everyone is safe at the moment. I want to believe that all of this was just a series of unfortunate accidents but..."

He trailed off, and placed a hand on the jagged rocks. "These formations are highly unnatural. By all normal logic, this shouldn't have happened. Somebody came here intending to block this path off."

Dawn peered at the rocks. "You think they were just being rude?"

"Maybe," Harold shrugged. "Or someone was planning something."

Dawn gave the rocks one more look before she began to walk towards the exit. Harold turned as well. "You're leaving?"

"I'm going to see if there's a way to reach Snowpoint from Oreburgh," Dawn replied. "Also, the place is filled with miners. There's gotta be someone who can come here and break the rocks."

A soft smile formed on Harold's face. "Thank you Dawn."

* * *

It was a pain to walk back through Route 204. The trainers she had once cheerfully battled were now annoyingly trying to do so again, and Dawn's mood had dampened from finding the blockade. She stomped through the wild grass, razing all of the wild pokemon in her path with Chimchar's embers.

Dawn sighed, heading towards the east gate of Jubilife. It was the early afternoon, so laughing trainers were running out of the Trainer School. Dawn frowned as she remembered the homework she'd have to do. While she and Barry were allowed to do the rest of their course work online, the last thing Dawn wanted to do was fall behind.

She wondered what her classmates were doing at the moment. School had just finished, so they would be heading back home, fighting with the pokémon they caught on the surrounding routes. Dawn grimaced. Battling at school was only so much fun when everyone only had the same four species of pokémon.

With that, her thoughts drifted to the Sinnoh Pokédex Project. She supposed that she should try harder to catch some more pokémon. Dawn didn't exactly want to saddle all of the work onto Lucas and Barry. Well, mostly Lucas.

Pulling out the Pokédex, Dawn flipped through it, only finding a series of question marks after the first thirty numbers. Curious, she flipped all the down to the bottom. The count ended at two-hundred and nine, meaning that the three of them had a lot of catching to do.

A quick calculation on her Poketch confirmed that she would have to catch at least sixty-nine pokémon to complete her share. Of course, some pokémon were definitely harder to catch than others. Knowing her and Barry, poor Lucas would probably be stuck with those.

A wry smile twitched on her lips, and Dawn put the Pokédex back in her back. She had reached the east gate, and now she would have to get back to battling. She had already healed Chimchar and Staryu with potions, so they would be ready to go.

Entering Route 203, Dawn eventually realized that while this route looked like a maze, as long as she kept to main dirt path, she would be fine.

Of course, she first spent twenty minutes walking around in circles figuring that out.

She had made her way to the Oreburgh Gate when another duo of annoying kids had run up to her. Was it just a thing for children to mob travelers?

"Can you battle us!?" the boy asked. "Me and Diana need to practice!"

He gestured to his friend, a young girl. She looked far more timid than the boy, keeping a tight grip on the glass capsule in her hand. Upon seeing Dawn looking at her, Diana gave Dawn a tight smile. "Curtis and I do need to improve our skills."

"Okay then," Dawn sighed. "Chimchar, Staryu. Let's try our hardest."

For what felt like the billionth time that day, she clicked the buttons on their poke balls, and the pokémon flew out. They were slightly banged up from earlier fights, but were still in a decent condition. Meanwhile, Curtis and Diana had sent out a Shinx and Budew respectively.

"Chimchar, tackle on Budew! Staryu, psywave on Shinx!" Dawn shouted.

Curtis hopped up and down, clearly excited. "Shinx, use leer!"

Diana looked significantly more bored. "Budew, water sport."

Chimchar quickly ran forward, smashing Budew into the rock face of the tunnel. Budew shrieked with pain, and released a plume of water from the bud on it's head. It thoroughly soaked both Chimchar and the area around it.

Meanwhile, Shinx had delivered a sharp glare towards Staryu, making it wince slightly. The red gem on the center of her body glowed brightly, and a wave of pink energy emitted out of it, blowing Shinx back.

"Tch. Shinx, use tackle on Chimchar!" Curtis shouted.

"Staryu, water gun on Shinx!" Dawn commanded. "Chimchar, use tackle on Budew again!"

"Dodge it, and use stun spore." Diana stated.

Shinx attempted to tackle Chimchar, but Staryu shot off a quick round of water guns, successfully blasting it away before he could hit Chimchar. This gave the latter an opening to run towards Budew and hit it again. She dodged the attack, and shot fine yellow spores out of her bud, and Chimchar got covered in the powder.

"Dammit," Dawn mumbled. "Chimchar, try to use taunt! Staryu, finish Shinx off with another water gun!"

"Budew, cover Shinx." Diana said.

"Thanks Diana!" Curtis hummed. "Shinx, use leer!"

Diana snapped her head to the side. "Don't do that!"

But it was too late. Before Shinx could leer at them, Chimchar taunted him. Shinx took the bait, and he roared with anger. He dove towards Chimchar, who simply stepped to the side. Shinx hit the rock face head first, giving Staryu an opening to blast it with a final water gun.

Diana muttered something about Curtis being an idiot. "Budew, absorb on Staryu!"

"Chimchar, use tackle!" Dawn said. "Staryu, use psywave!"

Chimchar flew towards Budew, kicking it into the rock wall. Budew shook it's head, and tapped her small foot on the ground. She drained energy from Staryu, causing the her to slow. Staryu's red gem glowed again, and sent a wave of pink energy towards Budew.

"Chimchar, ember!" Dawn yelled. "Staryu, finish it off with another psywave!"

Staryu repeated the same action as before, this time doing far more damage. Chimchar then ended the battle by spewing some flames at Budew.

Diana sighed, and returned Budew to her poke ball. "This is why you think before attacking Curtis."

Curtis laughed weakly. "I suppose you're right."

Dawn smiled, and she finally was able to pass by them into Oreburgh City. She breathed in a gulp of fresh air upon exiting the musty gate. It was quite nice here. Oreburgh wasn't as snowy as Twinleaf or Jubilife, though the air had a slight nip to it. Now, all she had to was pass through and-

"Hey! Hey Miss!"

Dawn blinked, and turned to see a young boy running up to her. He was wearing warm winter clothes, and a baseball cap was on his head. She immediately placed a foot behind her, ready to take off if this boy asked for a battle.

Thankfully, he instead said, "Miss! You must be here for the gym battle against Roark!"

"What! I'm not here to-" Dawn yelled as the boy grabbed her wrist.

The boy began leading her around the city, his mouth running a mile a minute. "So many people have come to here to battle Roark since he became a gym leader. He always wins. Me and my friends have been placing bets on who'll beat him first!"

His chest puffed up. "Me and Bidoof will win once I train him enough to become a strong bibarel! I'm going to be just like Red, and become Champion! Champion Johnny!"

Dawn gave him a weak smile. "I'm sure you will."

Johnny then stopped dead as he pointed in a huge brown building. There was the Sinnoh Pokemon League's crest on the front of it, and a small rock sign which read: LEADER ROARK.

Johnny hummed. "Here we are! Here you go miss!"

He skipped off, Bidoof scurrying closely behind him. He high-fived another nearby boy, and they both ran towards the coal mines.

Dawn put her hands on her hips. "Why do people always assume that trainers battle gyms? It isn't even open." she grumbled.

She grabbed her bag as she made her way towards the Pokemon Center. Dawn walked into the orange building, and she pulled out her poke balls containing Staryu and Chimchar. It had been a bit since they had had a proper stay at the Center, and Dawn wanted to them to be rested up for Mt. Coronet.

Dawn walked up to Nurse Joy as she said. "I'm here to heal my Pokemon."

"Alright!" Nurse Joy hummed as she placed the capsules into the healing machine. The machine pulsed twice as a little jingle played. "Here you go! All healed!"

After thanking the nurse, Dawn exited the Pokemon Center, and decided to head north first. She wanted to scout out the area for any wild pokemon she could catch for the Pokedex.

Unfortunately, as she reached the small route north of Oreburgh, she found yet another setback. The route was surrounded by steep rock walls to smooth to climb, with the only path being a sandy slope that she definitely climb up.

"WHAT THE HELL!" Dawn yelled, holding out her arms.

A nearby biker laughed. "Don't you have a bike?"

"...No." Dawn admitted.

"Well, once you get one, just switch it fourth gear and pedal your way up!" The biker said as he flew up the slope and out of eye shot.

Dawn sighed as she looked at her poke balls. "What should we do then guys? We're pretty much stuck here until the rocks get cleared or we get a bike."

"HEY DAWN! IS THAT YOU!?"

Dawn looked up to see Barry sprinting towards her. Dawn searched for a way to escape, but alas, she was caged in. Barry smashed into her at full speed, and they both ended up the ground. Sharp rocks jabbed into Dawn's back, and she mumbled. "Seriously Barry, do you have brakes? Stop doing that."

Barry got up as he laughed nervously. "Heh. Sorry Dawn. What brings you here? I though you were going to Eterna."

"There's a blockade over at Florama," Dawn said, dusting off her pink coat. "I came here to get some help and keep on moving. However..."

She gestured to the giant sand slope. Barry sighed. "That sucks. That reminds me, Lucas told me that you need to take this entrance to hit Snowpoint."

"Really." Dawn sighed. "Huh. Guess it'll take even longer now, having to take such a roundabout way."

"I dunno," Barry said, examining the sand slope. "Maybe you can..."

He trailed off, and backed up. Placing a foot on the rock wall opposite to the slope, he kicked off, sprinting towards the slope. He managed to make it three-quarters of the way up before he slid down, his entire front side now covered in sand.

"Well, at least I now know running isn't an option." Dawn mused. "Oh well. I'm going to head down to the mines to find someone who can help out with the blockade."

"I'll join you!" Barry added. "Apparently Roark is in the mines."

The pair walked back into the town, and Dawn attempted to strike up some small talk. "So... you catch any pokémon yet?"

"A couple," Barry replied. "Apart from the starly I caught, I don't think I'll use most of them on my team. But hey, I'm filling up the Pokédex, right? What about you?"

"Only a couple," Dawn admitted. "I've been... sidetracked."

Barry nodded, and they stepped into the coal mines, black particles of coal wafting in the air around them. Along the outside of the mine, workers hefted heavy machinery as the extracted coal and drove it away it big trucks.

As they got close to the entrance, a worker stopped saying. "You two got safety gear?"

"...No." Barry answered truthfully.

The worker shook his head before handing them both hard hats and neon yellow vests. Dawn shoved her white hat into her hag and pulled the vest over her coat. Once she and Barry finished putting the hard hats on, they flicked on the lights and ventured into the dim mines. Almost immediately, Zubats swarmed them.

"C'mon, let's fight!" Barry shouted. "Starly!"

"Let's try our hardest! Chimchar!" Dawn yelled.

Both of the pokemon flew out, ready to battle.

"Starly, quick attack!" Barry yelled.

"Chimchar, ember!" Dawn commanded.

Starly dove towards one of the zubat's at a lightning speed, sending it flying back into the rocky walls. Meanwhile, Chimchar spat out flames, setting them on fire. That seemed to deter them, and they flew off.

"There we go," Dawn said. "Now we just need to-"

She was cut off by the sound of crunching dirt. Turning her head to the source of the noise, Dawn watched as the previously inanimate piles of rocks rise. They were not a pile of rocks, but rather a bunch of sleeping geodudes, who did not look happy about being awoken from their naps.

"You've got to be kidding me," Dawn sighed. "Chimchar, use ember again!"

And so it continued. Every time they attempted to take a step towards the bottom of the mines, more wild Pokemon attacked them at every step. By the time they reached the elevator, Starly and Chimchar looked ready to pass out, Barry was rubbing his arm where a geodude had hit him with a rock, and Dawn was covered in dirt.

"Roark better be down here," Dawn grumbled as she looked at her clothes. "I just washed these this morning."

"He'll be down here!" Barry said hopefully. "If not, at least we got a lot of training."

"Still, Chimchar and Starly are exhausted." The other girl said as she returned Chimchar to its poke ball and sent out Staryu instead.

Barry nodded in agreement as he switched out Starly for Piplup. All of them walked into the mine shaft and clicked the button to go down. The shaft creaked and groaned as the elevator began to slowly descend. It seemed to move at a snail's pace, and Dawn started tapping her foot out of impatience.

Barry began shifting from foot to foot as he said. "Can't this thing go any faster?"

"I don't know, why don't you try jumping?" Dawn answered sarcastically.

"Good idea!" Barry replied as he began hopping up and down.

A loud crack was heard above them, and Barry and Dawn both froze as some dust rained down on them. Piplup had let out a loud shriek, and buried her face into Barry's sweater while Staryu's red gem flickered with surprise. Dawn looked at Barry, who had become considerably paler.

"On second thought, how about we just stand still?" Barry said weakly.

The mine shaft reached the bottom of the cave and everyone practically ran out as they examined the area in front of them. It split off into two different directions, and the pathway had a maze-like structure made of large and small boulders. Dawn caught sight of a worker, and she sprinted towards him.

"WHERE'S ROARK!" Dawn screamed at the worker, who backed away quickly.

"Over there." the worker stuttered as he pointed down a tunnel.

Dawn nodded as she and the others took off in that direction, dodging rocks and blasting away Zubat's and Geodudes that got in their way with water guns from both Piplup and Staryu.

Soon, Barry saw a flash of red. "THERE!"

The two of them whipped around, and saw a man who looked to be a couple years older than them. He had shoulder length red hair nestled under a mining cap, and he wore grey mining clothes. The man turned to the source of the noise, revealing sharp red eyes behind thick black glasses.

Dawn ran up to him. "Are you Roark?"

"Yeah, that's my name," Roark replied. "Are you two challengers?"

"Oh I'm not!" Dawn replied. She grabbed Barry's wrist. "But my friend is!"

Roark turned to Barry, who nodded vigorously. Roark's eyes fell on the Pokedex in Barry's hand, and his eyebrows shot up. He shrugged, and turned back to the rock face he was working. "Alright. It's getting late. Come to the gym tomorrow morning."

"Okay!" Barry shouted.

He and Dawn turned and began to walk back towards the mine shaft. "Was that really worth it?" Dawn grumbled.

"Of course it was!" Barry replied happily. "Now I know I can come and do the gym tomorrow!"

"But you could have just waited till he came back," Dawn pointed out. "We had to battle hundreds of pokémon just to get a measly confirmation."

"Well, you've got to be less grumpy." Barry concluded as they stepped into the mine elevator. "Let's get going to the Pokémon Center."

Upon reaching the orange building, Dawn quickly booked a room to stay at for the night. As soon as she entered the room, she unbuttoned her pink coat and placed down the laundry chute for cleaning. Dawn sat down on her bed, quietly pulling a bright brochure out of her bag.

_Come to the Battle Frontier! Five new attractions are coming to Sinnoh to test talented trainer's skills! Stay tuned for more news coming out on-_

"DAWN! Do you know where the laundry chute is?!"

Dawn sighed as she walked of her room to see Barry in nothing but a white t-shirt and pants. He held his striped top, which was now more beige than white and orange. "It's in your room somewhere." she said.

Barry nodded and went back into his room before Dawn returned to hers and picked up her brochure again. Where was she again? Oh right, when more news was coming out.

_...more news coming out on-_

"DAWN! I STILL DON'T SEE IT!"

Dawn threw the brochure on the bed. "WELL, YOU MUST BE BLIND THEN!"

A series of thumps came from the room opposite to her, and Barry's voice resounded, "Oh! There is is! Thanks Dawn!"

The girl in question rolled her eyes as she picked the brochure again. Ah yes. More news about it was being revealed tomorrow morning. Dawn began to hum as she picked up her poke balls containing Chimchar and Staryu, making sure to polish them with a handkerchief.

It was a good choice to take up the offer to do the Sinnoh Pokédex Project. Now she could simply continue north, catch some pokémon, reach Snowpoint, take an icebreaker to the Fight Area and she'd be set!

...That is, as long as nothing stupid didn't get in her way.

But nah, that wouldn't happen! She'd been dreaming about this since she was ten, when the first Battle Frontier was opened! What could possibly go wrong?

* * *

Roark sighed as he exited the mine, pulling off his red helmet so he could brush some sweat off his face. As much as he wanted to head back to house to relax, he had a meeting with one of Professor Rowan's Pokédex Holders.

Pokédex... That boy from earlier had one. The girl probably had one as well, seeing how close they were.

A small laugh escaped his lips. Those kids were no older than sixteen, yet they were already traveling the region to complete the Pokédex. They were steamrolling the process these days, aiming to complete four sections of it over the course of four years.

He reached the white museum, and entered the building, relishing the blast of warm air. He immediately caught sight of who he presumed was Lucas. The boy was leaning against a wall, and flicking through a blue Pokédex.

"Are you Lucas?" Roark asked, walking up to the boy.

"Yes. You must be Roark." Lucas greeted, shaking his hand. "I've brought the fossil Professor Rowan and I found in the Underground."

He pulled the fossil out of his bag, and Roark examined it. The fossil was a dusty brown, with a raised design that resembled an shield. Roark nodded, and gestured for Lucas to follow him. They walked to a labelled door, and Roark unlocked it. They both stepped down the narrow hallway, and found themselves in a room with a giant, intricate machine.

"Place the fossil here." Roark instructed, pointing to the circular indent in the middle of the machine.

Lucas followed suit and watched as the upper half of the machine lowered to cover the fossil. The machine glowed, and Roark pulled out two plastic chairs.

"You should probably sit," Roark explained. "Fossil revival usually takes a bit."

Lucas took a seat. "Thank you for letting me come here. It is required for me to collect all of the fossil pokémon in order to complete the Pokedex."

"You must be rather dedicated to your work," Roark said. "Finding fossils in the Underground isn't easy. How did Professor Rowan get someone like you?"

Lucas fists tightened slightly. "He helped my family out of a rough patch. I owe to him to help with his research."

"But it seems like you're content to do complete the entire Pokédex by yourself," Roark said, raising an eyebrow. "I met your partners a couple hours ago, and they seemed competent enough."

Lucas' face softened a modicum. "They are good trainers, and decent people. But from what I've observed, Dawn and Barry were not the best choices for the Pokédex."

"Hm?" Roark asked, intrigued. "Why is that?"

"Dawn has potential, but she's only interested in the Battle Frontier," Lucas explained. "And Barry may be a decent trainer, but he has no discernible skills."

"Discernible skills." Roark stated.

"The Kanto Pokédex Holders have specialties when it comes to raising pokemon while the Hoenn ones have significant abilities that set them apart from others," Lucas said.

"Really?" Roark said. "And what's your skill?"

Lucas pulled an ultra ball out of his bag. He spun it around on his finger before catching it in his palm. "Catching pokémon. I have certain talent for it."

He then looked at the ultra ball. "Regardless, while more observation is required to make a conclusion, Dawn and Barry have no skills or notable achievements to warrant them a Pokédex."

"What about the Johto Pokédex Holders?" Roark asked.

"All of them have specialties as well." Lucas answered.

Roark opened his mouth to reply, but was cut off by the beeping of the machine. Lucas got up from his chair, and he looked at the machine. "Is it done?"

"Yes." Roark replied, clicking on one of the buttons.

The top of the machine lifted, and instead of a fossil, there was a small pokémon. It had a stubby cream coloured body, with a small grey stones on each foot. Their head was oval shaped, and made of grey steel, with two slightly paler curves of steel decorating their face. They blinked curiously, taking in their surroundings.

Lucas had pulled out his Pokédex, and scanned the pokémon. "Hm. Shieldon is your name. Good to meet you. I'm Lucas."

He reached out a hand to Shieldon, only for the pokémon to snort and hop to the ground, walking towards the door. Lucas frowned and followed it. As the two left, Roark said. "One last thing Lucas."

Lucas turned his head. "Yeah?"

"We had a good talk," Roark said. "But your ideology on the Pokédex Holders has a gaping hole in it."

"What is that?"

"None of the Pokédex Holders were given those titles until their section of the Pokédex was complete," Roark said. "There's still plenty of time for Barry and Dawn to prove themselves worthy."

"I suppose you're right." Lucas replied.

* * *

"Dammit! Where is it?!"

Dawn flicked a strand of damp hair out of her face as she looked under her bed. There was definitely a television guide in her room the night prior, but it seemed to disappear. She put her hands on her hips, pouting.

"Hey Barry, could I borrow your television guide?!" she shouted.

"Sure!" Barry yelled back. He ran into her room, and handed her his guide. "Be right back!"

Dawn sat down in front of the television, examining the channels available on the guide. "Sinnoh Daily News Update." she recited as she searched for the right number.

Upon finding the right number, she clicked through the channels until she found the one she was looking for. Barry returned to her room, and both of them sat on the couch. The logo flew across the screen, and the news anchor stepped on screen. She gave the viewers a bright smile, accentuated by her bright red lipstick.

Smoothing out her blue suit dress, the new anchor said. "Welcome to the Sinnoh Daily News Update! My name is Hannah Hinks, and we'll be discussing the new Battle Frontier!"

Dawn nodded excitedly as she listened closely. Hannah continued. "As we all know, the Sinnoh Battle Frontier has only been letting high-ranking trainers in at the moment for the testing process.

"Yes!" Dawn shouted as she pumped her fist. "I knew this would happen!"

"... But most importantly, this time there will be a regulation on who gets to come to the Battle Frontier!" Hannah added.

"Wait, what?" Barry said. Beside him, Dawn froze.

"That's right folks! Due to problems in Hoenn with the vast number of people attending, there will be a small regulation." Hannah explained.

Onscreen, there was a small video of the Hoenn Battle Frontier, which was packed to the brim with trainers. People were screaming shoving others over, and the lines were huge. Next to her, Barry winced.

"Trainers must now be recognized in order to enter the Frontier! It is predicted that in about a year or two, the Battle Frontier will be able to loosen the regulations and..."

Dawn no longer listened, her jaw nearly touching the ground. Beside her Barry had gone pale. "How do you become recognized?" he asked.

Hannah answered that question for him. "If you want to become recognized, the easiest way to do that will to collect all eight badges! That wont be too much trouble will it, for all you young trainers out there!"

Lucas had been getting ready to leave the Pokémon Center when he heard an ear-piercing scream. His head snapped up, and he grabbed a poke ball from his bag. Following the source of the noise, he knocked on the door. "Is everything alright in there?"

The door creaked open, revealing Barry, who looked pale. He looked slightly happier upon seeing Lucas. "Oh good, it's just you!"

"Did someone get murdered?" Lucas asked.

"No, Dawn just had her hopes and dreams crushed." Barry replied.

"...What happened?" Lucas said.

Barry opened the door fully, and dragged Lucas into the room, where he saw Dawn sitting on the brown couch, perfectly still. Her face was agape with shock, and she appeared to be stuck in her own world.

"She found out she had to gyms to go to the Battle Frontier." Barry explained.

"Oh. That's a rather large setback," Lucas noted. "It must sting."

"Tell me about it."

* * *

**Yeah, this chapter ended up being almost double the length I intended. Not going to lie, the first draft of this was around 2,500 words. I don't think that's a bad thing though. As stated in the first AN, it'll probably be at least another two weeks before I can update. Until then, farewell!**

**~Book Mage~**


	4. Chapter 4: Decisions, Decisions

***Crawls out of ditch***

**I'm back! I apologize for the delay. This chapter took a lot longer than I thought it would, and I admit, I got distracted by some other one-shots. But hey, hopefully I won't take so long for the next one!**

**Now, for the reviews.**

**the willyrex: Yeah, poor Dawn. Her luck in general is pretty bad, and she basically only has two options from here. It's interesting to see how her opinion will change in the future...**

**Uninspired Heap: I'm happy you're enjoying the characters so far! Dawn has a pretty close-minded opinion on gyms, and it's going to be fun to challenge it. I agree that Chapter 2 wasn't the best, and I'll probably be rewriting it one day. Thank for the review~**

**Guest (Aug. 29): Glad you're enjoying the story!**

* * *

As soon as she heard those damning words, everything around Dawn went fuzzy. Her head was felt like it was filled with cotton, the thoughts in her mind processing faster than they ever had. Two options presented themselves.

She could wait a year or two for the Battle Frontier to loosen regulations, and then come there.

Then there was the second option, to complete all eight gyms and then go to the Battle Frontier.

Of course, both paths had their downsides. She would have to wait a long time for the Battle Frontier to open to normal civilians, and then it would most likely be busy.

But she would have to do gyms if she went with the other choice. The taste of bile filled her mouth upon thinking of that option. She had sworn off gyms years ago, after _that_. Beside her, she could faintly hear the murmurs of Lucas and Barry, discussing what they should do about her.

"Gee, you think she'll be okay though?"

"I don't know. Remember, I've only known her for a couple days. _You're_ the childhood friend."

"Doesn't mean I know everything! _You're_ the smart one between the two of us."

A bitter laugh bubbled out of her. Lucas and Barry glanced at her, worried expressions on both of their faces. She clenched her fists, anger bubbling up in her.

"Uh, she's beginning to shake Lucas." Barry noted, his voice quavering.

"Brilliant observation," replied Lucas, his voice dripping with sarcasm. "You think's she's going to blow?"

Alright, that was it.

Dawn stood up abruptly, and grabbed her pink coat that was hanging off of a nearby wooden chair. She pulled it on before snatching her white beanie from the nightstand.

She finally spoke, her tone clipped. "I'm leaving for a walk. Barry, you should get ready for your gym battle.

She grabbed her yellow bag, and slung it over her shoulder, coldly brushing past Barry and Lucas. As she left the room, the remaining two inhabitants looked at each other.

"What do you think will happen now?" Lucas asked.

"No idea. The last time she was like this, it took her awhile to bounce back."

"The last time?"

Barry sighed, pulling his fingers through his blond hair. "That's- it's- damn, forget about that. It's none of your business."

"Well, you heard her," Lucas said, preparing to head out the door. "You have a gym battle coming up. I recommend you prepare. I'll go see if I can cheer up Dawn."

"You think I'm going to let myself walk off and do gyms while she's like this!? No way!" Barry shouted, his face twisting with anger.

"No worries," Lucas calmly said. "I'll make sure that you and her have time to speak before your match begins.

"In the meantime, you need to collect your thoughts, and Dawn needs to relax. Farewell."

Without waiting for an answer, Lucas turned on his heel and exited the room. Barry found himself now alone in the room, with only the buzzing of the television keeping him company.

He angrily slammed his fist down on one of the night-side tables. "Dammit!"

* * *

Dawn flung open the glass door of the Pokémon Center, ignoring the strange looks cast towards her. The morning chill stung her cheeks and exposed legs, but she ignored the cold in favour of stewing in her own anger.

It wasn't fair! She had been waiting for ages for the Battle Frontier to come to Sinnoh, and now she to wait even longer to even be able to go. What would she even do during that time!

"Hey."

Dawn turned to see Lucas approaching her, Turtwig by his side. "What do you want?" she spat.

Lucas held up both his hands. "I was just going to ask if you would like to catch some pokémon with me. The Pokédex isn't going to complete itself."

Dawn lost a bit of her bite, regret already blooming in her. She had been rather rude to Barry and Lucas, leaving like that earlier. And no matter how angry she was, she had agreed to this job.

"...Okay. That sounds good."

The pair of them headed north to the patches of wild grass, awkward silence permeating the air. Dawn avoided looking at Lucas, who was attempting to busy himself by flipping through his Pokédex.

They reached the tall wild grass, and shuffled into it. Dawn had taken to peeking between large blades of the grass, releasing chimchar to help her. Meanwhile, Lucas had caught a whiff of something burning. He began following a trail of singed grass and hoof prints. After awhile though, the hoof prints stopped.

Lucas glanced around him, confused by the sudden lack of a trail. A loud whine reverberated through the air, and Lucas whipped around to see a cream-coloured horse charging towards him. Her flaming mane was flickering wildly, and Lucas dove out of the way.

Dawn had heard the noise, and began running towards the source. However, a wild pokemon flew out of the grass towards her. It was a petite, bright red bug, with two thick black antenna poking out of his head. Dawn pulled out her Pokédex, finding it was called Kricketot.

"Ponyta," Lucas said, reading the small amount of info the Pokédex gave him. A majority of the entry was blank, but it gave him the type and name. "Alright Turtwig, use tackle."

Turtwig obeyed, diving towards Ponyta. He hit her in the chest, and Ponyta reared back, whining in pain. She dug her hooves in the ground, and she sputtered out some flames at Turtwig, setting it on fire. Turtwig quickly rolled around on the dirt, putting out the flames.

Meanwhile, Dawn was battling with Chimchar, who had weakened Kricketot with his repeated embers. The opponent attempted to growl at Chimchar, but he wasn't deterred by it at all.

"Alright, time to capture!" Dawn yelled.

"Aim for the place where a pokémon's power gathers!" Lucas shouted back, still concentrating on his battle with Ponyta.

"What the heck is that?!"

Lucas slapped a hand to his forehead. "Where the pokémon's power gathers!" he repeated. "Aim for Kricketot's forehead!"

Dawn gave him a weird look, but fished an empty poké ball from her yellow bag. She aimed, and threw it as hard as she could. She missed the forehead, instead striking it in the nose. Regardless, the opening function still worked, and Kricketot was sucked in.

The poké ball rattled rapidly, with Kricketot attempting to escape the confinement. After three shakes, it clicked in defeat. Dawn cheered. Her Pokédex scanned the poké ball, and quickly wrote an entry about Kricketot. It also included his weight and height.

She turned her attention to Lucas, who was commanding Turtwig to weaken Ponyta. He had a significantly harder time, with Ponyta having an advantage over Turtwig with her superior speed and typing. Still though, Lucas managed to whittle down her health.

Lucas grabbed an ultra ball from his bag, and Dawn watched as Lucas aimed, and hit Ponyta in the chest. Ponyta was sucked in, and the poké ball paused, shuddering once before it fell to the ground. The poké ball shook once, and clicked. Lucas grabbed the poké ball off the ground, and scanned it with the Pokédex.

"Is that what happens when you hit it 'where the pokémon's power gathers' or something?" Dawn asked.

"The official term is critical capture." Lucas answered.

"How do you even know how to do that?"

"My father was part of the study that coined it. It's not hard to figure out where it is if you know what to do."

Dawn nodded. The bravado of the situation had faded, and they were back to the awkward silence. They both knew about the elephant in the room, yet neither wanted to bring it up.

Lucas looked away. "I don't think gyms are a horrible idea Dawn."

And just like that, her anger flared up again. "I've explained it to you twice Lucas!" Dawn yelled. "I hate them!"

"But they're a good way to gain experience," Lucas replied. "Let's face it, on average, the Pokédex completion takes six to eight months. After that's done, you'll just be sitting around, waiting for your life to begin."

"You don't know anything."

"I know enough. By doing gyms, you can get better, and train your pokémon. Take whatever grudge you have against those things, and turn it into power you can use to plow through them. It's just eight battles. You said it yourself. Take a type advantage, and defeat them easily."

Lucas ended his tangent, and looked right at her. His eyes seemed darker than usual, as if he was recalling something he didn't want to remember.

Dawn considered his words. She did have Staryu, who could probably take down Roark and Maylene. Chimchar could fight Gardenia, Byron, and Candice. That left Crasher Wake, Fantina and Volkner, but she would be catching more pokémon over the course of her journey. Surely some of them would help.

She still lacked the desire to fight the gyms though.

"I'll think on it," Dawn said. "In the meantime, I need to find a worker."

"Hm?"

"I met someone who needs some help," Dawn explained. "We need a pokémon who can destroy rocks."

Lucas raised an eyebrow, but followed her as she headed south to the mines. The workers were already hefting heavy machinery, and carrying picks into the mines. Around them were machops and geodudes, bright neon ribbons were tied on their limbs to differentiate them from the wild pokémon.

Dawn approached one of the workers, who was holding a clipboard and directing others. She waited until he was done one of his orders, and tapped him on the shoulder.

"Oi. Whaddya want?" the worker drawled. He appeared to be around forty, and his work clothes were already covered in coal dust.

"Do you happen to have any workers who can head to Route 204?" Dawn asked. "There's a large blockade, and no one can get through."

"Sorry girl," the worker said. "There's a large coal order due in a few days, and the workers are already doing overtime. We can't afford to lose any time or workers for a few rocks."

"Those few rocks are completely cutting off Floaroma Town." Dawn stated.

"Not our problem," the worker stiffly answered. "Find someone else to do it."

Dawn bit her cheek, the sharp taste of iron bubbling up in her mouth. "Fine then."

She stomped away, Lucas close behind. "This really isn't your day, is it?"

"Shut up Lucas."

Lucas winced. "Sorry, that joke was in poor taste. It's just... Chimchar can evolve into a stronger pokémon if he has enough experience. Probably strong enough to destroy rocks. Of course, that'll take a bit if you only battle wild pokémon."

"I know what you're insinuating."

"What can I say? My opinion is that you should do gyms."

"Whatever. I want to speak to Barry before he starts his gym battle. He's probably at the west gate."

* * *

They found Barry relatively fast.

He was just outside the gate on Route 203, fighting off packs of wild pokemon. The piles of already fainted creatures suggested he had been doing this for awhile, as if he was burning off anger.

Starly and Piplup were out of their poké balls, teaming up to take down a group of feisty bidoofs. Starly herself looked different, now significantly taller, and the plumage atop her head larger. Her wings looked stronger, though still having the same grey and white pattern.

Another curious thing was a third pokémon by Barry's side, who was battling a geodude by himself. He was petite, bright green pokémon with light green bud attached to his head, and a small yellow face with two beady eyes. She recognized it as a Budew, having seen the species while in Route 204."

Dawn waited until Barry was finished his battle before she approached him. "Hey Barry."

The boy in question turned, and his face filled with relief. "Dawn!"

He ran towards her, and grabbed her hands. "I was really worried when you ran off! Are you okay?"

"Yeah, I'm alright," Dawn said. "I just don't want to talk about it. You ready for battling Roark?"

A grin appeared on Barry's face, and he lifted up the small green pokémon. "I was training the others when I came across this guy! His name is Budew!"

Dawn gazed at Budew. Upon closer inspection, it was slightly smaller than the ones she had seen the day before. When he saw she was looking at him, he shrunk away a bit. "Grass type?"

"Yep! I'll definitely be ready for Roark's battle now!" Barry hummed. "Not only that, Starly also evolved with all this training!"

"How about we watch you fight?" Lucas said.

Dawn gave him a look, knowing exactly Lucas was trying to do. However, Barry was rather excited, and she did feel a bit bad about ditching him earlier. Plus, he the two were looking at her expectantly, and it's not like she had anything better to do.

"Sounds good! I'd like to see you battle anyways."

* * *

"Alright, I'm ready to challenge you Roark!" Barry shouted, pointing at the gym leader.

Roark pushed up the rim of his glasses, and grabbed a poké ball from his belt. "Barry Jun. You're one of the new Pokédex Holders, so I'm curious about your skills. I accept your challenge."

Barry smiled, and grabbed his first poké ball. "C'mon, lets fight! Piplup!"

"Geodude, it's time to battle!" Roark shouted.

Piplup stepped onto the field, a confident expression on her face. She'd been training for this, and she had the advantage. She gazed at her opponent, a Geodude with strong arms made out of rock. Barry knew that he'd have to have Piplup stay far away from him, as to prevent her from getting hit.

"Alright Piplup, use bubble!" Barry shouted.

Piplup opened his mouth, and sent a swarm of bubbles towards Geodude. They popped upon impact, splashing Geodude with water. Barry carefully noted the rocks around Geodude, and how Roark made eye contact with his partner.

"Piplup, back away, then use bubble again!" he yelled.

Geodude hoisted one of the larger rocks into the air, and threw it at Piplup. Luckily, she had backed away, so the rock only grazed her. She then opened her mouth, and she shot another swarm of bubbles at him.

"Roark isn't giving any commands." Dawn noted.

Lucas glanced at her. "All gym leaders are like that. They've forged a deep enough bond that they don't need to use words to communicate."

Dawn raised her eyebrows, and turned her attention back to the battle.

Geodude slammed his fists onto the ground, sending rock shards flying into the air. Some of the bubbles splashed onto the rock shards instead of their intended target as a result. Geodude dodged the remaining bubbles due to their slow speed. Geodude struck the ground again. Pointed shards levitated around Piplup, eerily suspended.

"Dammit," Barry grumbled. "Stealth rock. Piplup, try growl!"

Piplup growled loudly at his opponent. Geodude winced slightly, but he shook, looking ready to launch himself. He backed up, and placed his hands on the ground.

"Gearing up for a tackle, huh?" Barry mumbled. "Alright then, Piplup use water sport when he gets close."

Piplup nodded, and she waited for Geodude to approach. She then sprouted a plume of water, and it rained down on both of them. While Piplup was unaffected, Geodude was damaged by the soaking. He still crashed into Piplup though, sending her flying into one of the metal walls.

Lucas squinted. "Barry predicted that attack, didn't he?"

"Yeah. His father taught him battling back when we were young," Dawn answered. "He always had this weird ability to predict what a pokémon move is."

"Interesting." Lucas mused.

Geodude dove towards Piplup, a fist poised to attack.

"Piplup, bubble one more time!" Barry shouted.

Piplup blasted Geodude with bubbles once more, and Geodude finally fainted. Roark pulled out a second poké ball, and switched Geodude out for Onix.

Barry glared at the tall pokémon, and switched out Piplup for Budew. The sharp rocks dug in Budew, and he yelped in pain, wincing. He nervously turned to Barry, awaiting an order.

"Tch. Budew, try growth!" Barry yelled.

Budew swelled himself up in size, becoming larger. However, he was still minuscule compared to Onix, who let out a loud roar. Budew shrank back down, curling in on himself.

"Screech huh?" Dawn said. "That's not good."

Lucas nodded in agreement. "With Budew's low defense, it most likely won't withstand more than one hit."

Barry noted that Roark slightly gestured towards Onix. The rock snake curled up, pointing his tail at Budew. He was certainly aiming for a rock throw attack.

"Brace yourself Budew. You know what to do."

Onix reared suddenly, sending a wave of rocks towards Budew. It crashed into Budew, and Dawn let out a gasped. The smoke cleared, and to everyone's surprise, Budew was still standing. His green bud was glowing brightly.

"Hm?" Roark said. "Absorb, isn't it?"

Barry smiled. "Now Budew, stun spore!"

Budew shook, and a shower of yellow spores flew out of the bud on his head. They floated down lazily, cloaking Onix in the powder. He shuddered, finding that his muscles had locked up.

Budew's bud now glowed brighter, easily draining energy from the large rock snake. With Onix unable to move the paralysis, his opponent slowly drained all of the energy from his opponent. Onix teetered, falling the ground. Unfortunately, due to his tall stature he came down right on top of Budew.

In the bleachers, Dawn took a quick inhale of breath. "Oh shit. You think Budew'll be fine?"

Lucas squinted at the fallen pokémon. "Hopefully? I'm not a pokémon doctor."

Roark himself winced a bit, holding out Onix's poké ball. He returned his pokémon, and once the red glow faded, all of them saw Budew lying on the ground. Barry ran over to him, placing him into his arms.

Budew's eyes opened weakly, and he gave Barry a small smile. His eyes closed, and Barry sighed in relief. "He's fine."

He returned Budew to his poké ball. He stood up, and nodded to Roark. "Alright, I guess we should continue."

Roark nodded, and he released his final pokémon. It was a pale blue pokémon, with a large, egg-shaped head. Two stubby legs poked out of his rock body, and he turned his red eyes to Barry, who had pulled out his Pokédex.

Barry furrowed his brow. "Cranidos. Pure rock type. Alright. Staravia!"

Staravia flew onto the field once again, and rocks dug into her body. She shrieked in pain, and Barry bit his tongue. "Staravia, growl!"

Staravia shrieked loudly, causing Cranidos to wince. He growled in return, kicking his clawed foot on the ground. A loud of dust rose, blocking Barry from seeing anything.

"You're able to predict a pokémon move by studying their posture," Roark stated. "What happens when you can't see him?"

From the dust, large rocks came hurling at Staravia, striking her wings. She failed to stay supported in the air, and fell. Barry examined the formation of the jagged rocks, and swore.

"Rock tomb," Lucas said. "Must be a TM move."

Dawn however, was examining the jagged rocks that had fallen to the side. They exactly resembled the ones she had seen the day prior, the ones that had blocked off her path to Floaroma.

Remembering the words of the hiker, she murmured, "Did someone create those rocks purposefully?"

Well, they must be a jackass. Dawn clenched her fists. Now she really had to find someone to destroy those things. She turned her attention back to the battle. Staravia had used growl again, and Cranidos had gone back to kicking up dust to cloak the battlefield.

"Double team!" Barry shouted.

When Cranidos came barreling out of the dust, Staravia had created multiple versions of herself. Cranidos dove through one of the many copies, and crashed into the metal wall. He wasn't damaged at all though, his rock-hard blue head unscathed.

Staravia opened her mouth to growl again, but Cranidos kicked up large rocks. Using his legs, he kicked the rocks right at the Staravia duplicates. One by one, he destroyed the copies until he struck the real Staravia. From there, he quickly aimed dozens of rocks at her. Before long, Staravia was buried under a pile of rocks.

"You did your best Staravia," Barry said as he returned her to her poke ball. "Now Piplup, let's fight!"

Piplup flew onto the stage for the second time, the jagged rocks digging into her blue feathers. She bit her tongue, not giving her opponent the pleasure of hearing her cry out in pain. Immediately, Cranidos slammed into her with a headbutt, causing her to fly through the air.

Barry shouted, "Piplup, water sport!"

She nodded, and released a plume of water around her. The dusty ground became soaked with water, making the battlefield around her a slick mess. When Cranidos came diving in again, he skidded. He crashed into the metal wall, giving Piplup an opening to shoot bubbles at him.

Cranidos turned around, and kicked up some rocks, beginning another rock tomb. The rocks struck Piplup, and she crashed into a rock wall again. She easily got up though, brushing off the attack.

"Is it just me, or did that do way less than it was supposed to?" Dawn whispered to Lucas.

"Much less."

Barry grinned. "Staravia has a new ability. It's called intimidate."

Roark's eyes widened with realization. "Intimidate. It cuts the attack in half. And with all those growls..."

"Now your beloved attacks does little!" Barry laughed. "Gotta say, I have to thank those townspeople for telling me about your ace.

"Now Piplup, use bubble again!" he shouted. "This battle is just beginning!"

* * *

"Congratulations on winning."

Barry turned his gaze to Dawn. In his hand was his white badge case, which now held one shining badge. "Uh, thanks. Next up'll probably be Gardenia in Eterna..."

His voice trailed off. The tension in the air was obvious, and Dawn said. "Look. No need to worry about me. You've been planning for this since we were ten."

"I know," Barry replied. "Just... It sucks, especially with how your-"

"Barry, seriously, drop it," Dawn said, "I don't need to be coddled."

He sighed, and gave Dawn a goofy grin. "Guess you're right, _Dawny."_

"Why you little-!"

"Ah! Okay, I'm sorry! Stay cool though. You've got your Pal Pad, right?"

"Yep. I put your and Lucas' friend code in mine, so feel free to send me a message anytime. You're heading to Eterna next, correct?"

"Yeah. Probably gonna stop by Jubilife though, just to check out some stuff there."

"Cool, see you later."

"See ya! Those gym aren't going to beat themselves!"

Barry took off running towards the east, leaving a cloud of dust in his wake. Dawn sighed, feeling the rays of the midday sun beating down at her. That gym battle had taken much longer than she had expected. Workers were now milling around in droves, taking their lunch break for the day.

"Hey."

Dawn turned to see Lucas approaching her. He had been oddly quiet through the entire exchange, hanging behind the two of them. Then again, Barry had been rambling again, so neither of them could even get in a word edgewise.

"He's a better battler than I thought." Lucas admitted.

Dawn flicked a strand of navy hair out of her face. "Yeah. Even if he never caught a pokémon before now, Barry's been studying battling since we were young."

"Hm. Well, I need to head off," Lucas said. "Think about what I said though."

You're leaving?" Dawn asked.

"I can't force you to do anything. Besides, I need to finish catching all the different of species of pokémon around here. Professor Rowan and I are meeting up tomorrow so he can check out Shieldon."

"Okay. See you soon."

"Until next time."

Dawn watched Lucas' retreating form until he faded into the horizon. She sighed. Looking down at her Pokédex, she thought about what he had said earlier. Barry had managed to defeat Roark. Then again, he had both Budew and Piplup at his arsenal, and he still had trouble beating the gym leader in the end.

What the hell. She could wait a full year, or she could force herself through all eight gyms. In the meantime she could train, and then be able to take down the Frontier Brains.

She began walking towards the gym, her feet feeling heavy like cement. She knocked on the door, and it opened to reveal Roark preparing for work.

"Oh? You're one of Barry's friends," Roark said. "It's Dawn, right?"

Dawn clenched her fists. "Correct. Look, I need to do eight gyms as fast as I can. When are you free next?"

"Let's see," Roark said, flipping open his pocketbook. "I'm sure you've heard about the large coal order from Canalave. We need all hands on deck for that. I'll be busy, but I should be good in a couple hours from now."

"Okay." Dawn replied. It would at least give her time to prepare with Staryu and Chimchar.

* * *

By the time Roark was ready for his battle, the sun had already mostly set, casting a shadow over the city. Dawn was waiting outside the large gym, and noticed that the lights inside the gym flicked on. She supposed there must be a staff entrance that Roark went through.

Entering the gym, Dawn quickly noted the maze-like structure of the area. Barry had done the same maze earlier. Unfortunately, she hadn't been paying attention, instead talking with Lucas.

The gym itself was a series of beige rock walls, some of which had metal steps leading up to a plateau. Those plateaus were connected by wooden bridges. She could faintly see the gym trainers on only one path- the shortest one- that lead directly to Roark. If she took a couple detours, she could easily get to Roark without battling any of the gym trainers.

She carefully walked up onto the first plateau, and examined the path she could take from there. In no time, she was in front of Roark.

"Dawn Hikari," Roark said. "I've heard about your plights, and your opinion on gyms. I believe this will be an interesting battle for the both of us."

"Indeed it will," Dawn replied, readying a poké ball. "Though it may be shorter than you intend it to be. Staryu! Let's try our hardest!"

She threw her poké ball, and Staryu flew out, flexing her orange appendages. Roark looked at the foreign pokémon and hummed, "Interesting. Geodude!"

Dawn smiled as the small boulder pokémon took the field. If this was anything like the wild battles, this would hopefully be quick. "Finish him off quickly! Staryu, use water gun!"

Staryu's central gem glowed, and she shot a beam of water towards her opponent. Geodude hefted up a rock, and shielded himself with it. The rock blocked a majority of the blast, though Geodude still did get wet. A glance at the floating shards confirmed that it was stealth rock, and Dawn bit back a curse. Now she had an even better to not risk switching out to Chimchar.

"Staryu, use rapid spin to get rid of some of the rocks!" Dawn yelled.

Her partner followed Dawn's orders, and spun rapidly. She flew around the arena, destroying the shards to dust. The remaining shards were blown away, nullifying any effect they could've had. Roark gave Geodude a quick nod, and the latter grabbed one of the many rocks in the gym and easily hefted it into the air. He threw it at Staryu, hitting it in the chest. Staryu brushed itself off, and stood back up.

"Water gun again Staryu!" Dawn commanded.

Staryu spun around, it's gem glowing again. Another water gun struck Geodude head-on this time, with no protection from the rocks. Geodude couldn't take the amount of damage, and he collapsed to the ground. Dawn smiled. One down, two more to go.

"That Staryu is rather powerful," Roark noted. "And not native to Sinnoh either. How long have you had it?"

"Since I was twelve." Dawn replied.

"Two years..." Roark mused. "You've trained it well. Onix!"

Roark clicked the button on another poke ball, and a large rock snake flew out. Two black eyes stared at Staryu, who inched away, intimidated by Onix's incredible height.

Dawn swallowed. "Staryu, psywave!"

Onix dove forwards, out speeding Staryu in her attack. He wrapped himself around her, tightly. Staryu squirmed in it's arms, emanating psychic waves. Onix let out a low growl, and it's grip loosened somewhat. Staryu managed to wriggle out of his grip, but not all of her escaped. A small orange appendage fell to the ground by Onix, and Staryu was now off-kilter.

Roark seemed to show some concern, looking at the orange arm on the ground. "She'll be okay, right?"

Dawn bit her lip. "Yeah, it'll grow back."

She kept to herself that it would most likely take a day or two for that to happen, and that this wasn't optimal for her. Ending this quickly would be desirable. She had gotten lucky with psywave dealing a decent amount of damage, so one more attack should finish it off.

"Staryu, use water gun!" she shouted.

Staryu spun rapidly, and she shot a beam of water at Onix, striking him. He thrashed about when the water hit him, lashing Staryu with his tail before it collapsed to the ground. Roark sighed and returned Onix.

"I'll admit, your skills are better than most," Roark said as he grabbed his final poké ball. "A lot of people can't even make it past Onix."

Roark continued. "Only your friend- Barry -has been able to defeat me so far. I don't intend to lose twice in one day. Cranidos, I choose you!"

A light blue pokémon flew out, and Dawn pulled out her Pokédex. A quick scan confirmed it was a pure rock type. She snapped the device shut, and put it back in her bag.

"Staryu, use water gun!" Dawn yelled.

Staryu did her usual spinning, attempting to charge up her attack. She fired off a couple water guns, but unlike the others, Cranidos was quick enough to easily dodge it. He barreled towards her, and smashed into Staryu full force. Staryu was sent flying into one of the piles of rocks. The smoke cleared, and Staryu was passed out.

"Dammit..." Dawn mumbled, returned Staryu to her poké ball. "Thanks for your help, Staryu."

She pulled out her last poké ball. "Chimchar, let's try our hardest!"

* * *

**So yeah, hopefully I can update the next part soon. This chapter mostly took awhile because I had some trouble with it. I didn't really like where the draft was going, so I ended up rewriting it, which then took awhile. And then I wrote a one-shot instead of actually writing this story. Heh. Until next time!**

**~Book Mage~**


	5. Chapter 5: Evolutions and Trades

***Rolls into the room***

**I'm back, with a new chapter! I'm glad I managed to update again, even though I got ah... distracted again.**

***Side-eyes Assassination Classroom and Miraculous Ladybug***

**But anyways, onto the reviews.**

**Uninspired Heap: Thanks for your review! I did miss that line break. Whoops! Thanks for the advice too! I'll try my best improve in the next few chapters. I'm glad you like Lucas. As for Dawn's knack... We'll see.**

* * *

Upon Dawn's command, Chimchar flew onto the ground, a confused look on his face. He looked up at Cranidos, and gulped at the formidable sight. Scrambling to his feet, he poised himself to attack.

Roark nodded, and Cranidos dove for Chimchar. Dawn shouted, "Dodge it Chimchar! Try climbing up the walls!"

Chimchar nodded, and he dove out of the way, clipping his leg in the process. He began clawing up one of the walls, his fingers scrambling for purchase. As he reached the top, and he looked down at Cranidos.

"Your Chimchar doesn't have any long-range attacking moves apart from ember, does it?" Roark asked, gazing at the wall.

Dawn didn't answer, knowing that Chimchar couldn't stay on that wall forever. She contemplated her options. None of them looked good.

Cranidos took a few steps back, and charged towards the walls, slamming into the thick metal. The wall shook, and one of Chimchar's hands slipped from the small crack it was using as a grip.

For the umpteenth time that day, Dawn swore under her breath. This battle was not in her favor at all, and things kept on getting worse. Maybe Chimchar could get a piece of paneling, and smack Cranidos with it? No, it would probably shatter on Cranidos' head.

While struggling for a decent plan, Cranidos had taken the opportunity to use focus energy, pumping himself up. He slammed into the wall a second time.

Dawn looked at the terrain of the gym field- it matched the type Roark used. It was littered with boulders, the ground a dusty mess. An idea sprung up in her mind.

"Chimchar, get to the ground." Dawn said.

Her partner nodded, and he jumped off the wall. He rolled gracefully as he fell, landing with a handspring. He bounced to his feet. Dawn met his eyes, and gestured to the ground, and then at Cranidos.

Cranidos didn't hesitate with his next attack, diving towards Chimchar once again. Chimchar dove out of the way, and Cranidos crashed into one of the walls. When he turned though, Chimchar was waiting with a handful of dust. He threw it into Cranidos' face momentairly blinding him.

Cranidos started to kick up dust to shield himself, and Dawn said. "Not so fast. Taunt him!"

Chimchar snickered, and began mocking Cranidos, making faces and waggling his finger. The taunt worked, and Cranidos roared furiously, diving towards the source of the noise. Chimchar sidestepped out of the way, revealed a decently-sized pebble behind him.

A pebble which was the perfect size to trip over.

Cranidos stumbled over the rock, falling onto his chin. Rivulets of blood dripped out of his mouth, having bitten his tongue. Dawn smiled. At least that plan had worked out.

If possible, Cranidos was even angrier now, turning to face Chimchar. Blinking rapidly, he flushed the dust out. Regaining part of his vision, and he dove towards Chimchar.

Chimchar was caught off guard, and he was sent flying back into one of the rocks. Chimchar grunted. He scraped a handful of dust off the ground, prepared to blind Cranidos again, only to get thrashed by rocks.

"That trick won't work twice," Roark said. "If that's all you got, I recommend we end the battle here before Chimchar gets any more hurt."

Dawn bit her tongue. She turned to look at Chimchar. Her partner forced a determined look on his face, and he shook his head, preparing to lunge at Cranidos. Dawn nodded.

"Very well. Chimchar, let's keep fighting till the end!" Dawn yelled. "We're not going to give up like this! Let's keep on going!"

Chimchar readied a fist, and he and Cranidos dove towards each other. His body glowed, and a blinding light filled the room. The light soon dissipated, and Dawn could look at the scene in front of her. Chimchar had caught Cranidos' skull, causing both to be stopped in their tracks.

Except that it wasn't Chimchar. It resembled him, but this pokémon was tall and lithe. Yellow fur covered his neck, the area around his eyes was ringed with blue. The small fire on it's bottom was now a long tail, with a flickering flame on the end.

Dawn whipped out her Pokédex. She scanned him, and read the new entry. "Monferno. It skillfully controls the intensity of the fire on its tail to keep its foes at an ideal distance."

Monferno firmly gripped Cranidos' head, and spun around, flinging the rock type into one of the nearby boulders. Cranidos growled, and kicked up rocks, tossing them at Monferno.

With a few swift kicks, Monferno shattered them. Once the barrage was over, he sprung forward, delivering a swift punch to Cranidos' face.

"Oh. That was new." Dawn said, looking at her Pokedex again. "'Mach punch.' Alright Monferno, let's show them! Barrage it with rocks, and use the walls to your advantage!"

Monferno followed her orders, swiftly collecting rocks. Utilizing his speed, he barraged Cranidos from all directions, throwing the rocks at him. Cranidos quickly retaliated by kicking rocks back, slamming Monferno with boulders.

"Tch. Time to pull out our last attack." Dawn grumbled. "Monferno! Mach punch! Utilize momentum!"

Roark frowned, and flicked his hand. Both pokémon backed up, preparing to charge. Monferno sprung forward, his fist clenched. Cranidos barreled towards his opponent. A loud crack resounded through the air.

Cranidos stumbled back, teetering as he finally fell. Monferno stood tall, panting as he shook his fist.

"Yes!" Dawn cheered. Monferno ran over to her, and the two hugged each other. The latter collapsed in her arms, and Dawn swore. She held up his poke ball, and returned Monferno.

"I'll heal you right up!" she promised.

Despite losing, Roark smiled. "You did your best Cranidos."

He returned him to his poke ball, and turned to Dawn. "I'll admit I underestimated you," he said. "You are deserving of the coal badge."

He placed a small badge into Dawn's outstretched hand. The badge was small and hexagonal, with a grey poke ball design on it. She didn't have a badge case on her, so she just clipped it to her white scarf.

"Losing twice in one day," Roark sighed. "I'm going to have to train more."

Dawn laughed. "Well, Barry and I are good. I've got to heal my pokémon. Stay cool."

* * *

Jubilife City was still a loud place, even during the nighttime. People brushed by Dawn as she examined her town map, trying to make sense of the directions with the dim light of the streetlamps.

Dawn furrowed her brow, holding map inches from her face as she muttered to herself. "I'm going to have to head north again. I suppose that now that I have Monferno, he'll be able to break the rocks in the way. And I should probably call mom too, shouldn't I?

She pulled out her Pal Pad, checking to make sure that her mother's number was written in it. Dawn rubbed her temples. "Homework too. Ugh, I should've stayed at the Oreburgh Pokemon Center."

"MISS DAWN!"

The girl in question looked up to see Agent Looker running towards her a full speed, in a similar fashion as Barry. The single difference was that while her childhood friend didn't have a brake installed, Looker stopped in front of her.

"Hello Looker." Dawn replied.

Looker glanced at the Pal Pad in her hand, and his chest puffed up. "Ah, I've seen you've gotten your Pal Pad. I myself, a member of the International Police, the fighters of crime around the world, have one also."

"That sounds nice-"

"For it is what one must have to trade pokémon with trainers around the world!" Looker interrupted. "Take that Pal Pad to the Global Terminal for trading on an international level!"

"Cool." was Dawn's reply. "I'll check it out."

Looker changed the subject. "Anyway, there appears to be no one shady in this Jubilife City. I shall take my investigation elsewhere! But my friend, I suggest you remain vigilant for shady grown-ups!"

He took off running in the direction of Oreburgh, and Dawn shook her head. "Weirdo. Might as well check out the Global Terminal tomorrow."

She made her way towards the Pokémon Center, hoping there was a place still open. It was several times larger than the ones Sandgem or Orebugh, but she was still worried.

Thankfully, those worries were quelled when she reached the center. It was packed full of trainers, but there were still rooms available. She unceremoniously dumped her bag onto her bed. Dawn grabbed a red marker. She began to mark which towns she had to reach on her town map.

Eterna, Hearthrome, Veilstone, Pastoria, Canalave, Snowpoint and Sunnyshore. Looking at the locations, Dawn sighed.

Why did all the gyms have to be in completely different parts of Sinnoh? At this rate, it would take months to finish the badge quest. At least she had a decent amount of time on her hands.

Dawn grabbed her notebook. While she had to plan out her journey, she also had to do some homework first. The last thing she wanted to do was for it to pile up.

* * *

Dawn stretched her arms, letting out a yawn.

Around her, children were beginning to head to Trainer School. Local pokémon tailed them, some wearing blue decorations to match the school uniforms. Dawn herself was still groggy, having stayed up late to work on schoolwork. Still though, she wanted to check out the Global Terminal before it became too busy.

She had already examined her town map earlier, finding that the Global Terminal was close. Following the directions given, Dawn navigated the city of Jubilife. Groups of people passed by her as she walked. Some wore business clothes and carrying briefcases. Others were in simple clothes and carrying cameras. Some were trainers like her, with powerful pokémon walking alongside them.

Dawn walked around a flock of starlys, and entered a large parking lot, which was filled with cars. She looked up, seeing that the Global Terminal was gigantic. And very bright. Eye-burning to be honest.

Entering the building, she noted it was filled with glowing warp panels and elevators. There were trainers bustling about, some around the numerous machines. Others were lining up near the warp panels. Dawn squinted up at one of many signs in the air, and followed the one leading to the GTS.

Soon enough, she was standing in front of a large desk. A quick flash of her trainer card, and Dawn was walking inside one of the many rooms, and guided to a computer. She booted it up quickly, and signed in using the instructions onscreen.

"Alright." she mumbled. "Time to find some pokémon."

She typed in a request for a Pikachu. After all, those things were pretty common in Kanto, right? Results appeared on the screen, and Dawn clicked on one.

_Offer: Pikachu, LV. 15_

_Request: Garchomp, LV. 70 or higher_

"What the f-"

* * *

On the other side of Jubilife, two people were meeting. One was significantly older than the other, and he appeared to be looking at a small blue machine.

You've been doing a good job filling up the Pokédex Lucas." Professor Rowan commented.

"Thank you," Lucas replied graciously. "It hasn't been much trouble, and Dawn and Barry have been collecting some of the ones I've missed. I expect the starters will evolve soon as well."

"Very good," Professor Rowan said. "By my predictions, Dawn's should evolve first, then Barry's and finally yours."

Lucas nodded. "Sounds about right. Moving on, I've revived the fossil pokémon we found a couple weeks ago."

He pulled out a poke ball, and pressed the opening function. Shieldon flew out onto the ground. Upon seeing Lucas, he rolled his eyes and snorted.

"...He doesn't like me much." Lucas said sheepishly.

"I see," Professor Rowan said. "Well, what if you tried-"

"Professor."

Annoyance washed over Professor Rowan's face. Lucas knew from experience that he hated being interrupted. He turned to look for the source of the unknown person, preparing himself for an awkward conversation.

There were two people approaching them, one male, one female. Both wore clunky gray and black spacesuits, complete with a golden 'G' insignia on their chests. Their hair were both trimmed into stiff bowl-cuts, and was a bright cyan shade. Even by Jubilife's standards they stood out. Lucas tensed. They were certainly suspicious.

Professor Rowan seemed to have the same impression.

"The Expo is two blocks down." he said, picking up his brown briefcase.

The female pressed her thin lips together tightly. "We are not here for the... Expo." she said disdainfully, spitting out the last two words as if they were were poison. "We're here to discuss an important manner with you."

"Really?" Professor Rowan said. "Rosanne said there was no appointment scheduled, save for the one with my assistant."

He gestured to Lucas, and the male turned his hard gaze onto the younger boy. A hungry gleam entered his eye upon seeing Shieldon by Lucas feet. Even the normally cold Shieldon was freaked out, seeing that he ducked behind Lucas' legs.

"Now, now." the female said. "We've come to offer a delightful business venture, courtesy of Galactic Enterprises."

"I have no use for any business ventures at the moment." Professor Rowan replied. "Now, if you could _please leave us alone..."_

Alright, it was time for him to step in. The Professor looked ready to swing his briefcase into their faces, and Lucas _did not_ want a repeat of last time.

* * *

"I swear to God, if I see one more request for a _level one Arceus I am going to shank-"_

Dawn slammed her head down the device, pain blossoming in her forehead. "All I wanted was a reasonably powerful pokemon. Was that too much to ask?"

Apparently, it was. After spending a full hour here, Dawn had come to the conclusion that a majority of the GTS was made of people wanting to own God. Or Mew. Or any rare pokémon. Others would offer powerful pokémon, in exchange for other powerful pokémon.

All she had to offer was a Kricketot.

In hindsight, this was a really bad idea.

A wry smile spread on her face. Two could play at this game. She tapped a couple keys, and clicked on Kricketot.

She snickered, entering in a trade request. "Let's see if anyone wants this little bugger in exchange for a Milotic."

Why a Milotic? She had no idea. Maybe it was because Barry's dad had one. Whatever. Those things were extremely rare anyways. Like anyone would want a level eight Kricketot in exchange.

Dawn sighed, tugging her fingers through her navy locks. In general, she seemed to have nothing but bad luck lately.

"Hey? Dawn?"

Dawn turned at the sound of her name, and a smile appeared on her face. "Harold! What brings you here?"

"I was trying to contact my grandchildren," Harold explained. "The phone lines weren't working this morning, so I was wondering if there was anything here that could help. Alas, there is nothing."

"Well, no worries," Dawn said, patting her bag. "I've got a pokémon that'll do the trick. We can go break those rocks right now."

Harold grinned. "Sounds good! I'll have to stop by the Pokemon Center first to pick up some supplies though."

"I guess we'll meet up at the rocks then!" Dawn said. "I should probably get some training done anyways."

Dawn clicked off the computer. At any rate, she wasn't having much luck there. Might as well do something useful.

She exited the building, and began walking towards the northern gate of Jubilife. On her way, she saw two familiar faces. She noted that Lucas and Professor Rowan were in a face-off against two strange people. The Professor looked ready to swing his briefcase, and Lucas had placed himself between the two parties, looking annoyed.

"No one shady my foot." Dawn grumbled as she remembered Looker's 'observations.'

As she approached the group, she heard one of the spacemen speaking, his voice insistent. "Now, now, now, now, now! Professor Rowan, you must comply! Hand over all your research findings. For free naturally. And that fossil pokémon your little assistant has."

The female next to the to the supposed leader added. "Failure to comply will result in a painful time for both of you."

Professor Rowan was about reply when he noticed Dawn. Calmness washed over his face, and he asked. "Ah, Dawn. How's the Pokédex going?"

"Chimchar evolved." was Dawn's answer. She released from his poke ball, and Professor Rowan nodded.

"I assumed that would happen soon," he said. His eyes fell on the badge clipped to her scarf and his eyebrows shot up. "You've gotten a gym badge. I thought you were going to do the Battle Frontier?"

"There were some stupid-ass regulations put in place." Dawn replied.

"Dawn!" Lucas said. "Language!"

"Whatever. Like you've never sworn before."

"For the record, no, I haven't!"

"Now you two, calm down," Professor Rowan said. "I'm sure you've caught some pokémon, right Dawn?"

"Well, about that... Would you be mad if I said I've only caught one...?"

"What!? You've haven't caught anything other than Kricketot!"

"Surprise surprise, not all of us are educated in pokémon catching like you are Lucas! I was busy!"

"Fair. But you better not expect me to carry your part."

"I wasn't counting on you to!"

"Now, I'm sure both of you- and Barry -will do your parts. There's no need to argue."

One of the grunts snapped his fingers, his voice rising. "Oh, Professor. Must you be so difficult? Stop changing the subject. We are speaking to you on business. Because this is work for us."

The female grunt said. "What were saying is- we demand you to comply with our requests."

Professor Rowan turned around, a disgusted look on his face. "Will you lot _be quiet!_ Why must you be such a nuisance! I'm trying to have a conversation with my protégés! Let me list some lessons you two _clearly _still need to learn!"

He raised one finger in the air. "Number One! Don't loiter for no good reason."

He then pointed at Dawn and Lucas, who had ceased their arguing in favour of watching the fight. "Number Two! Don't interrupt people when they're trying to converse.

After that, he turned towards them again. "Number Three! If you don't get your way, don't raise your voice to be intimidating.

He gestured at the pair of them. "Number Four! Don't think you've grown strong just because you're in a group.

Finally, he held out both of his hands. "Number Five! _What is those outlandish outfits you've got on?!_ My goodness, you call yourself adults?

Professor Rowan shook his head. "You kids, don't grow up to be like those sorry specimens. And Dawn, please try to catch more pokémon."

Dawn's eyes were wide with shock. She nodded numbly in response. Meanwhile, Lucas remained deadpan.

"Does this happen a lot?" she asked.

"About once every few weeks," Lucas said nonchalantly. "You get used to it."

The two grunts looked ready to pop a blood vessel. "Eeeeeh! You had to make this personal!" one of them shouted.

"You have forced our hand!" the female one yelled, unclipping a poke ball from her belt. "We will make you regret insulting Team Galactic!"

Professor Rowan stepped back, a calm look on his face. "Please teach these thugs a lesson of civility, kids."

"Of course," Lucas replied coolly. "Let's battle together Dawn."

"Alright! Let's try our hardest! Go Monferno!" Dawn shouted.

"Turtwig, we'll practice our skills." Lucas said.

Meanwhile, the Team Galactic grunts had sent out a stunky and glameow. "Fake out Glameow!" the female grunt yelled.

Glameow ran up in a blink of an eye, and pretended to bat her paw at Monferno. He flinched, and Glameow let out a satisfied titter before running back out of range of any attacks.

"Poison gas Stunky!" the male grunt said.

Stunky turned around, and sent out a wave of purple gas towards Turtwig. Turtiwg writhed in pain, his green skin taking on a purple tinge. Meanwhile, Monferno was still shaken from the attack, and he failed to hear Dawn's order.

"Turtwig, razor leaf!" Lucas yelled.

Turtwig summoned dozens of leaves, and sent them flying at the pair of pokémon on the other side. Stunky easily brushed the leaves off, looking unharmed. However, Glameow yowled from the cuts the sharp leaves left on her body.

"Monferno, use mach punch on Glameow!" Dawn shouted.

Monferno finally came to his senses, and dove forward with a near-blinding speed. He delivered a swift punch to Glameow's face. He then grabbed her tail, and threw her into one of the nearby streetlights, making sure to avoid nearby civilians. Glameow stumbled a bit as she got to her feet, disoriented from the sudden attack.

Stunky let out a shrieking roar, causing both Turtwig and Monferno to wince, the latter trying to cover his ears. While they were still distracted, Glameow ran up to Turtwig, and raked it's claw over his face. Turtwig winced, blood welling along the cut.

Lucas mumbled something under his breath. A smile came over Turtwig's face, and he closed his eyes. Glameow stopped in her tracks, her limbs seizing up. She collapsed to the ground, and Dawn noted that the cuts on Turtwig's were healing quickly.

"Absorb." Dawn mumbled. "Smart. Monferno, ember on Stunky!"

Monferno nodded, and he held out a hand, summoning a small flame. He flung it at Stunky, and the latter reared back, his purple fur scorching an ashy black. Stunky opened his mouth, and screeched again.

"Tch." Lucas grumbled, covering his ears. "Turtwig, you know what to do."

Turtwig slashed Stunky with another razor leaf, sending him crashing to the ground. Monferno grabbed the Stunky and raised it to his face, finishing it off with an ember.

The male grunt stepped back, anger twisting his face. "How is this madness possible? The two of us, losing to children?"

"Because you two are crap at battling." Dawn answered as Lucas healed Turtwig and Monferno.

The female grunt gritted her teeth, mumbling. "This won't do... Time to retreat. Mission is a failure."

"We shall take out leave," the other grunt said. "Because Team Galactic is benevolent to all."

The ran off toward the northern cavern, and Dawn turned to Professor Rowan. "Why were they harassing you anyway?"

"They wanted my research on Pokémon Evolution." Professor Rowan explained, gesturing to his briefcase. "When pokémon evolve, they seem to release some kind of mystic energy. I believe it's a power beyond our control. However, Team Galactic appears to be studying that very power's potential."

They want to know if the power can be used for something," Lucas finished. "According to the Professor's research, 90% of pokémon are somehow tied to evolution."

"It's all over though, so we can relax now," Professor Rowan said. "Thanks to you two, nothing came from that situation. I appreciate that. Your battle skills are quite good. I know you'll defeat the gyms quickly, and be able to collect a lot of information for the Pokédex."

"I hope so," Dawn mumbled. "I'll be sure to catch more pokémon. The Pokédex helps quite a bit in battles."

Lucas and Professor Rowan nodded, and they headed back to Sandgem Town. Dawn prepared to leave when she was stopped by a tall, round man. He had short brown hair and a beret, his blue overalls decorated with bright contest ribbons.

"That battle was excellent!" he shouted. "I'm a worker from Jubilife TV, and that battle was smashing! I'd like to give you something for letting me witness that glorious display!"

He handed her a bright pink, heart-shaped case with a golden design on the top. Inside, Dawn noted that there was a wild range of supplies in it, ranging from a plastic mask to a pile of fluff in various colours.

"What's this for?" Dawn asked.

"The fashion case..." the man sighed. "A whole spectrum of chic accessories and backdrops, to dress up your pokémon and let them glow!"

"Ah, I see." Dawn replied.

She recognized it now. Her mother had similar one at home. They were often used for pictures and contests. She and Barry once got her hands on one, and spent the day dressing up Staryu and her mother's glameow for fun. It had turned out rather interesting, seeing that the two of them lacked any fashion sense.

He spun away, and Dawn sighed. "Well, that was interesting. Looker was wrong though. Everyone in this city is shady."

"Dawn!"

Harold hurried up to Dawn, a jolly smile on his face, Geodude by his side.

"I'm surprised you haven't headed to the blockade yet." he said.

"I got... sidetracked." Dawn replied. "Let's head out."

Harold nodded, a jolly smile on his face. His joy was infectious, and Dawn soon found herself smiling, both of them walking with a bounce in their step. The northern route was devoid of trainers due to most of the trainers being in school, so they reached the blockade quickly.

Dawn released Monferno from his poke ball. "Alright Monferno! Smash those rocks!"

Her partner nodded, and he backed up a bit, bracing himself. He dove towards the rock, his fist cleanly smashing through the barricade. Rock shards blew back, and Dawn raised an arm to block her face. The blockade was destroyed, leaving a clean path in their wake.

Harold whistled. "Amazing!"

He turned to her, and shook her hand vigorously. "Thank you Dawn! I must repay you for this!"

"It's nothing really, I-"

"No, really! Why don't you come meet my grandchildren? One of them is right around your age, and I'm sure you'll get along!"

"But- fine," Dawn replied, seeing that she wasn't going to win this battle. "Let's go."

Harold hummed to himself as they walked along the rocky path. Upon exiting the cavern, Dawn found that the route was now a forest terrain, with trees lining the dirt road. The path had no trainers though, and it was eerily quiet.

"Is it always like this?" Dawn asked.

"No, there's usually plenty of trainers," Harold replied. "Maybe something's going on today."

Even the wild grass held far less pokémon than usual though, and Dawn was starting to become worried. Something definitely wasn't right. Monferno kept close to her, a wary look on his face. Even Geodude had begun to hang close to Harold.

They soon reached the decorated wooden arch that separated the town and the route. Stepping into Florama Town, Dawn admired the beautiful greenery. Even in the middle of winter, it was absolutely beautiful, the trees covered in a fine layer of frost. In the middle of the town was a huge shop with paneled windows, revealing the rows of potted flowers in the store.

Despite the beauty though, there was an uncomfortable air to the town. Dawn could smell something scorched. There wasn't a person in sight, and all of the curtains in the homes were drawn closed.

"What happened here?" Dawn muttered.

* * *

**And close!**

**I hope you guys enjoyed this chapter! Reviews and feedback are much appreciated, and great thanks to everyone whose supported me so far! Hopefully, the next chapter can come sometime soon. We'll see how life goes.**

**~Book Mage~**


	6. Chapter 6: Windworks Insanity

**Hello! I'm back, and it's been...**

***Glances at calendar***

**Oh dear.**

**I apologize for long this update took. School unexpectedly picked up, and I ended up having much more coursework than expected. October and November have been full of tests and projects, so I've been busy. On the bright side, Winter Break will be starting for me in a month, so hopefully I'll have some more time then. **

**Regardless, the new chapter is here!**

**the willyrex: Yeah, Dawn's already gaining a bit of respect for gyms. Not a lot, but she's admits it's harder than she originally thinks. It's a start. Never apologize for asking a question! About the whole pokémon bleeding thing... Eh, never really thought about from that angle. I just included it because it seemed logical. Glad you enjoy it though!**

**Now, after far too long, here's the sixth chapter of _Warped Matter!_**

* * *

"What happened here?" Dawn asked, looking at the desolate sight before her.

Harold glanced around worriedly. "No idea. We should head to Eric's. His house is close."

"Hey! Why are you two outside!"

The pair turned to see a woman running towards them. She wore the exact same outfit as the grunts from earlier, from the teal bowl-cut to the silver spacesuit. Her stunky was close behind her, and with a quick command, he pounced towards them.

"Monferno!" Dawn yelled.

Using ember, Monferno wreathed his fist with fire. He delivered a flaming fist to Stunky's face, sending the skunk flying back. He then flicked a flame towards the grass in front of the grunt, setting the grass on fire.

"And we're out!" Dawn said. "Where's Eric's place!"

Harold grabbed her wrist, and they both took off. Dawn nearly tripped on the slick ice a couple times, and Harold was slowing, relying on his cane for support. They hurried down the maze of dirt paths, acutely aware of the shouting behind them. Soon, a small stone house came into view, lined with wooden arches and small planters. Harold frantically knocked on the wooden door, and it opened to reveal a middle-aged woman. By her feet was a small Magby, who looked at the two of them curiously.

The woman gaped at them. "Harold! Why are you here?"

"No time for questions!" Dawn shouted. "We need to hide!"

The women looked at Dawn. "Who are you?"

"A friend!" Harold said. "Ophelia, we've got people tailing us!"

Ophelia looked in both directions quickly before gesturing for the two of them to come it. She slammed and locked the door as soon as they entered. She then lead them into the dark living room, which was dimly lit by candles. Dawn sat down on one of the patchy couches, catching her breath.

"Grandpa!"

A yellow blur sprinted past Dawn, and launched themselves into Harold's arms. "I missed you!" they cried.

"Lacey!" Harold said, patting her on the head. "Good to see you!"

Now that she could get a better view, Dawn saw it was a young girl. She wore a bright yellow dress, and had a red bow attached to her short brown hair. She kept a tight grip around her grandfather, as if she was afraid he would disappear.

"I was worried the bad people got you too!" Lacey cried.

Harold smiled softly. "No worries. I've brought a gift for you."

He handed her a poke ball, and Lacey pressed the button. A small shellos flew out, and gazed up at her new owner. Dawn recognized it as being from the east side of Sinnoh due to its blue-green pigmentation and small white horns.

Lacey squealed with joy, and picked the shellos up. "Oh, he's so cute! He's like Shelly, but blue! I'll call him Lossie!"

"I'm glad you like it," Harold laughed. "Now, where's Nathaniel and Pompom? Are they hiding in their room again?"

Lacey's smile dimmed. "No. Nathaniel left earlier, without even telling me goodbye.

Her arms tightened around Lossie as she let out a huff. "He better apologize when he gets back!"

"He left?" Harold asked.

Ophelia sighed, twisting a strand of hair around her finger. "Lacey, how about you head upstairs for a bit? I'm sure Shelly would love to meet Lossie."

She phrased it as a question, but her tone was stiff. Lacey pouted, but followed Ophelia's command. After she left the room Ophelia took a seat on the patchwork couch across from Harold and Dawn.

"Well, I assuming you two know about how the blockade shut us off from the south." Opehlia said. "The phone lines got cut soon after you called us. These strange people came into town after, quickly locking us down."

"Locked down?" Harold said. "Ophelia, what happened to Eric and Nathaniel?"

"Eric never came back from the-

Ophelia stopped mid-sentence, and scowled at the stairs. "Lacey! Get back upstairs!"

"But mom! I wanna hear what's going on! You never tell me anything!"

"Lacey, it's dangerous! Just please, head back upstairs!"

Lacey let out an intelligible grumble in response, stomping back up the steps. Ophelia listened until she heard a door slam close before continuing. "Eric never came back from the Valley Windworks a couple days ago."

"He never came back!" Harold said.

"It gets worse," Ophelia replied. "This morning, Nathaniel left without telling me to try to get him back."

"Nathaniel left! Oh Ophelia, I'm sorry. This is horrible."

"I doubt Pompom can make it through those packs of grunts either." Ophelia said. "This whole mess is taking a toll on me."

She indeed looked worn out, with dark rings under eyes and her messy brown hair that haphazardly pulled back into a low ponytail. Magby looked at her worriedly, patting her shoulder.

"I'm sure it has," Harold said. "Eric never came back...They must want something to do with the Valley Windworks."

"The power's been janky all day." Ophelia mused. "Unfortunately, nobody here is a strong enough battler. There's simply too many of the intruders defending the Windworks, and we're all too terrified to leave."

"Why hasn't anyone come though?" Dawn asked. "I know the path down south was blocked off, but shouldn't people from the north be coming to help?"

"The gym leader from Eterna was planning on coming," Ophelia said. "Unfortunately, she got caught up in other events. She was going to send someone, but there's been a large storm warning for the last few days. Because of this, no one wants to risk anything.

She looked down. "Floaroma Town is a small place anyways. Most people who pass by here are trainers."

"That gives Galactic Enterprises a lot of time." Dawn sighed.

"Is that what they're called?" Ophelia asked. "They came with zubats and stunkys, threatening to destroy anyone who stood in their way. They already torched one of the fields."

"Don't worry," Dawn mumbled, getting up. "I ran into some grunts earlier today. I'll go fight them."

"No way," Harold said firmly. "I'm not sending a person as young as you out. It's too dangerous."

"Too dangerous my foot," Dawn replied. "I defeated some grunts earlier. I can do it again. I've defeated Roark!"

"It's too risky." Ophelia added.

"Your son left!" Dawn shot back. "He's going to need some help."

"He left without telling me." Ophelia snapped. "I'm not going to be responsible for two missing teenagers."

"I don't care," Dawn said. "I'm going anyways."

"Dawn, calm down," Harold said. "You're not thinking straight. You saw how many grunts were outside. It's likely there's even more guarding the Windworks."

Dawn bit her lip. With an angry grunt, she sat back down on the couch. "Fine."

Ophelia sighed, pressing her fingers to her forehead. "I'll go make some tea. You're free to stay here until everything cools down."

She headed into the kitchen, muttering something under her breath. As soon as she left, Lacey ran back downstairs. Lossie was in her arms, as well a small pink shellos that Dawn assumed was Shelly.

"Grandpa, can you tell me what's going on?" Lacey asked.

Harold smiled. "Lacey, I think it's best if you don't know."

Lacey pouted. "But everything's boring around here without Nathaniel and Pompom! I have nothing to do."

"Well, I'm sure everything will cool down." Harold said. "Why don't you help me look through my bag? I bought some souvenirs from Sunnyshore to show you."

Lacey nodded, and ran over to Harold's large backpack. She placed Shelly and Lossie next to her as she poked through the contents of Harold's backpack.

She laughed, pulling out a figurine of a Electivire. "Hey! Isn't this Volkner's pokémon?"

"Yep! I think there's also one of Flint's Magmortar in there as well…"

Dawn tuned out the conversation, preferring to think of ways she could sneak out of the house. The best way to do that was to roam the house a bit. After a bit, she got up and began to wander through the halls. She dodged Ophelia in the kitchen, who was heating up some water with the help of magby. Ophelia gave her a questioning look, and Dawn mumbled something about needing to use the washroom. She turned towards the stairs, hoping to find a fire exit.

Upstairs, the hallway was lined with photos, and Dawn took some time to look at them. She paused at one in particular, which had the whole Lehne family. She recognized Ophelia and Lacey, but not the other two. She supposed that the taller one with the lab coat was Eric, while the other one with glasses was Nathaniel. Dawn noted that purple, balloon-like pokémon with beady black eyes were floating around them.

"Those are Drifloon."

Dawn turned, and saw Lacey. The younger girl had a devious smile on her face. "You're trying to sneak around." she said.

"Please don't yell for Ophelia or Harold." Dawn said.

Lacey let out a laugh. "Don't worry. Big bro and Papa are in trouble, aren't they?"

Dawn looked away guiltily. Lacey giggled again, and pulled a glass capsule out of her dress pocket. "I found this in Grandpa's backpack. He said it was for big bro."

She placed it in Dawn's hands. "...Thanks." Dawn said. "Why are you helping me?

"I'm bored," Lacey answered. "Mom says I can't go outside because of Galactic Eint- Entri-"

"Enterprises?"

"Whatever they are. I want to show Lossie the fields."

"Well then," Dawn said. "I suppose I'll be heading off then. Any suggestions?"

"Don't die?" Lacey offered.

Dawn laughed, and the two of them snuck down the stairs. Ophelia and Harold were now in the kitchen, sipping tea. Lacey ran towards them, purposefully knocking over one of the cups.

"Lacey!" Ophelia said, looking at the mess.

Lacey arranged a look of horror onto her face and cried, "Oh no! I'm so sorry Grandpa!"

"It's fine Lacey. I'll have it cleaned up in a jiffy."

"Let Shelly and Lossie help! They both know water gun!"

"Wait Lacey! You'll make the floors all wet!"

While all of them were distracted by the mess, Dawn ran for one of the screen doors. She slid it open quietly, and sneaked out the door. As expected, grunts were roaming around town. So long as she was careful, she'd be fine. They seemed to work in a grid formation, so it would be easy to avoid them if she waited for them to look away. It almost reminded Dawn of the puzzle video games she would play as a child.

With time, the eastern gate appeared in her line of vision. She passed through the wooden arch, keeping a hand on Monferno's poke ball in case things went south. The route appeared to have a lower quantity of grunts, but that didn't mean she could put her guard down.

There were grunts guarding the bridge, but they were facing in the opposite direction. As she sneaked by, Dawn heard them talking about 'the pathetic Squadron C who lost the intruder.' and how 'Commander would not be pleased.'

They didn't seem to notice her, so Dawn picked up the pace. She walked past a couple windmills, and found herself in Valley Windworks. It was a tall, sleekly paneled building that appeared to completely dark on the inside.

"You! Get back here at once!"

Dawn turned her head, and saw another grunt chasing a... balloon? She quickly recognized it as one of the drifloon from the pictures. Attached to it's strings was a piece of paper, which Drifloon was trying to keep out of the grunt's reach. Meanwhile, the grunt's glameow was trying unsuccessfully jump up and claw at it. Drifloon hovered just out of her reach, letting out a warning cry.

"Hey, get away from him!" Dawn yelled, running towards the grunt.

The grunt glared at her, and with a quick gesture, his snarling glameow turned its attention to her, sharpening her claws menacingly.

Dawn quickly tapped the button on Staryu's poke ball, sending the water type out. She teetered slightly from her missing appendage, but prepared to battle.

"Use water gun!" Dawn shouted.

Staryu shot a beam of water at Glameow, sending her opponent crashing to the ground. Glameow got back to her feet, now furious about her mud-soaked fur.

"Now, rapid spin!" Dawn said.

The water type spun rapidly, slamming into Glameow's chest. Glameow flew back, and Staryu continued her barrage of attacks. Glameow growled. Her blue eyes glowed, and Staryu's spinning slowed as she became drowsy. With this, Glameow wrapped her tail around Staryu's limbs.

"Slam them Glameow!" the grunt yelled.

Glameow's tail tightened. In one fluid motion, she flung Staryu into a nearby tree, the wood splintering upon impact.

"Staryu, recover, then water gun!" Dawn yelled.

A creamy glow cloaked Staryu, the splinters on her body healing. The jewel on her chest glowed a bright red, and she shot off rounds of pressurized water towards Glameow. The cat dodged the beams with grace, and prepared to pounce.

"Wait until she gets close, then try again!" Dawn commanded.

Glameow dove forward again, but Staryu was ready. With a precise shot, she sent Glameow sprawling to the ground.

"Very good. I believe we've won." Dawn said.

The grunt backed up, clenching his fists. By this point, Drifloon had flown over behind Dawn, glaring at his attacker.

"No, I believe I said to leave the Drifloon alone." Dawn said.

The grunt laughed bitterly. "Very well. He was a nuisance, but not a mandatory objective. I warn you little trainer, Commander Mars won't take your offense lightly."

"I don't even know who Commander Mars is," Dawn said, walking towards the door. "Not that I care."

The grunt shot past her, and flung the metal door shut behind him. "I never said anything about letting you in."

Dawn swore, slamming her fist on the door.

"You'll never be able to enter anyways," the grunt added. "After all, the only one with a key is Squadron B, and they're in the Floaroma Meadow."

"Floaroma Meadow, huh?" Dawn mumbled.

She had seen a wooden sign earlier that pointed to a meadow. It would be simple to get the key from the grunts.

...Of course, there was the matter involving Drifloon that needed to be addressed.

She turned to her new companion. "Say, why were you there anyways? I thought you'd be hiding out with your family."

One of Drifloon's strings extended to her, holding a slip of paper. Upon examining the messy scrawl, Dawn realized it was a quick note from one of the researchers.

_We've been taken hostage. Stay put. There are droves of grunts here._

Dawn looked at Drifloon. His eyes squinted, and he took a couple experimental swings with his strings. He then pointed at himself before gesturing at the building.

"Some of your siblings were taken?" Dawn asked.

Drifloon nodded, and spun around. He floated right up to her, and pointed Monferno.

"You want to help." Dawn said.

Drifloon let out an affirmative noise. "Alright then," Dawn said. "Let's head to that meadow."

* * *

_What was taking Squadron B so long?_

Mars sighed, pressing two of her fingers to her temples. Leave it to those dolts to mess up the objective. The objective itself was a simple one too, just collect the required item.

Then again, these grunts had already proven themselves to be incompetent. They had failed to lock down the city in time, making her do all the work as always. Then they'd let that intruder sneak in, forcing her to divide up her forces. Finally, they allowed one of the drifloon to escape.

She glanced at Charon, who was siphoning electricity out of the generators with one of his odd contraptions. Those wimpy scientists were still huddled in the corner, their arms bound behind them with rope. A couple drifloon bobbed around them, their panicked squeaking grating on her ears. She did hope that Charon would be finished soon. The last thing she wanted to do was be stuck with him any longer. Why she got saddled with that dolt, she had no idea.

"Commander Mars!"

Mars turned to see one of her grunts approaching her, his posture stiff and straight. She put a kind smile on her face and spoke, her voice light and airy. "Yes?"

"There's been an attempted intrusion," the grunt said. "A young girl came, trying to find a way in."

"And you defeated her?" Mars asked.

"Unfortunately, I was unable to do so," the grunt replied. "She took the escaped Drifloon with her. She's likely headed for the Floaroma Meadow."

"I see," Mars replied. "In that case, recall grunts from Floaroma. She'll likely be returning."

"Duly noted."

Mars smiled sweetly at him. "Thank you~ Once you're done, please join Squadron C in finding the male intruder from earlier. We don't want another escaped one, do we?"

* * *

"Tch! This brats tough! Like, really really tough!" the Galactic grunt murmured as he backed away. In front of him, his pokemon were both down for the count.

Dawn returned Monferno to his poke ball, and she said. "It's more that you only use two zubats."

The battle had been simple with Monferno's fire, since he could torch anything in his path. Drifloon had easily distracted the other grunt by periodically scaring him with astonish. Said grunt was now hiding behind a tree. Unbeknownst to him, Drifloon was approaching, a malevolent look in his eyes.

Dawn smiled. "Now, I heard that you have a key to the Valley Windworks."

"Like we'd ever hand it over." the Galactic Grunt growled. "Commander Mars gave us a clear set of rules and not giving the key to anyone was one of them."

"Drifloon." Dawn said dryly.

A ghastly face appeared behind the grunt, and shrieked loudly. The grunt jumped, and Dawn snatched the silver key out of his hand.

"I'll be taking that~"

The grunt growled at her, his face twisted with rage. "Fine. Commander Mars will destroy you."

He grabbed his fellow grunt, and dragged him out of the clearing, presumably back to the Windworks. Dawn looked down at the silver key in her hands. She should do the same.

As she sneaked back, Dawn noted that there were far less grunts than before. Odd. Was she just being paranoid earlier? She should still be wary. Maybe they were converging somewhere?

Drifloon peered over a corner of one of the houses, before gesturing to Dawn when the coast was clear. The two of them ran through Floaroma Town's eastern gate, and followed the same path as earlier. The two grunts at the bridge were still there, but now were talking about 'the female intruder.'

Picking up her pace, Dawn reached the metal door, and quickly jammed the silver key into the lock. A couple twists, and the door unlocked with an audible click. Dawn slipped the key back into her bag, and entered the building. It was dark inside, the only source of light coming from the frosted windows.

"There!"

Dawn whipped around to see a faint silhouette pointing at her. Within seconds, dozens of other grunts were behind them, poke balls in their hands.

"Get the intruder!" the leader yelled.

A cacophony of squeaks filled the air as a wave of zubats flew towards Dawn. Damn. Those things had night vision. Monferno was by her side a second, two small flames lighting his palms. With the small source of light, Dawn could now see the swarm of opponents.

"Huh. There's a lot of them."

Maybe Harold and Ophelia were right about the whole number thing.

"Monferno, light them up!

Monferno's palms glowed a bright white, and fire roared through the area, decimating the Zubat's in his path.

"Squadron B, attack with formation three!"

The air around Dawn shifted, and she found herself surrounded by a swarm of zubat's, blinding her. Monferno's pained cries cut through the air as the remaining bats dove, swiping at him with their webbed wings.

Drifloon spun around, creating a wave of wind. The zubat's were sent flying back, giving Dawn enough room to back away. With that, Dawn returned Monferno to his poke ball, and took off.

Running wasn't the most elegant option, but it was the only one she had at the moment. The grunts were still tailing, so she'd have to lose them. She wove around large generators, and flung open a heavy metal door, slipping inside.

She quickly discovered that the room wasn't really a room, but a janitor's closet at best. There a couple mops and buckets in a corner, and cleaning supplies. Nothing she could use to help her in this situation. Sighing, Dawn flattened herself on a wall as she heard grunts run by. They were shouting about an intruder, and now Dawn knew for sure her cover was blown.

Then she got smacked by a broom.

"What the-" Dawn sputtered before getting struck again.

"Who are you!?" the owner of the broom hissed.

"Who the hell are _you!?"_ Dawn shot back. "Stop hitting me!"

"I'm not going to let a grunt get away!" the person said, swinging the broom at her.

This time, Dawn dodged the attack. "Grunts! You think I'm one of those fashion disasters?!"

"Well, I-"

"Drifloon! Please help!"

With this, the attack ceased. "Wait, what? Drifloon?"

The pokemon in question let out an indignant squeak, swatting the other person with his string. The boy sighed, and dropped the broom with a clatter. There was a clicking noise, and Dawn was swathed in a yellow glow. Now that they had a light source, Dawn could faintly see the boy's features. He had short brown hair, with wire glasses that glinted in the warm glow cast by the flashlight in his hand.

He looked rather apologetic, and mumbled. "Huh. So you were telling the truth. Sorry about that. Hey Drifloon. What's up with you?"

Drifloon squinted at him before huffing and turning away. The boy winced. "Same as always I see."

Dawn shook her head. "You're Nathaniel, aren't you?"

"Yes?" Nathaniel said tentatively. "Do I know you?"

"Your grandpa told me about you," Dawn said. "Of course, he didn't bring up how you like to smack people with brooms."

"Well, it was the only viable weapon I could find..." Nathaniel weakly protested.

"Whatever," Dawn said. "Why are you hiding in here anyways?"

"We got cornered by grunts. Pompom managed to fight his way out, but he's badly injured." Nathaniel said, gesturing to single poke ball on his waist.

"Right. Harold brought you this." Dawn said, tossing the poke ball Lacey gave her at him.

Nathaniel caught it, and smiled as he examined the contents. "A Bronzor. Heh, Grandpa remembered. I'm gonna call you Mira.

He walked to the door. "I've been avoiding the grunts for a little while now. With your help, we might be able to reach Dad and the others."

"Alright. Are you a decent battle?" Dawn asked.

"Not really." Nathaniel said.

Dawn waved a hand. "Eh, I'm sure your good enough. What's the plan?"

"Avoid grunts, and head upstairs. I heard my father up there earlier," Nathaniel said. "Provided the grunts don't catch us again, we should be able to get there easily."

"What if we run into a grunt?"

"I'll blind them with Mira. Knowing Grandpa, they probably know flash or confuse ray."

"Ouch. Sounds good."

They quietly creaked open the door and Nathaniel shot a quick glance both ways.

He let out a soft whimper. "What the heck happened to the floors?"

Dawn poked her head out. "What?

Upon seeing the soot-covered floors, she sharply inhaled. "Oh, uh, that. Monferno may have been aggressive."

"Do the words 'property damage' mean anything to you?" Nathaniel hissed.

"Well, you got insurance, right?" Dawn said.

Nathaniel shook his head, and sighed. "That's not the point- You know what, let's keep moving."

Dawn shot a quick glance both ways before gesturing for Nathaniel to follow her. They tiptoed out, and began sneaking through the halls. It was still dark, and they didn't want to attract any unwanted attention.

"Alright, follow me." Nathaniel mumbled.

He lead her around the maze of generators, to a small flight of stairs. Dawn heard the occasional sound of footsteps in the distance, and faint shouting. Her eyes were beginning to adjust to the dark, and she could see blobby shapes around her.

Her fingers tightened around the metal handrail, irrational fear creeping up on her. She knew they were nothing more than mere silhouettes, but it didn't stop the tricks her mind played on her.

"Hey! It's the intruder! He's with the girl!"

Dawn jumped, her heart skipping a couple beats. She whipped around, seeing a pack of shadows sprinting towards them.

"Oh crap!" Dawn yelled. "You got a plan Nathaniel?!"

"Uh- right! Mira! Flash them!"

"_Flash them?"_

"That came out wrong! Just look away!"

Mira's entire body lit up, becoming a blinding beacon. Even though she looked away, Dawn's eyes burned from the sudden influx of light. Judging by the grunt's yells and curses, they had been temporarily blinded.

Nathaniel's fingers wrapped around her wrist. "C'mon, we need to go!"

The two of them raced up the stairs, ignoring the noise they made. Nathaniel lead them to another round of generators, and pulled her behind one.

"Dammit! Where'd they go!?"

"Tch. Grunt A3! Go alert Commander Mars about the occurrence. The rest of you, comb the area!"

The sound of stomping filled the air as the grunts began methodically searching the room. Nathaniel turned her, a worried look on his face. "They'll be expecting Bronzor. Got any plans?"

"Give me a second to think." Dawn replied.

They couldn't use any remaining electricity with most of the generators drained. However, Staryu could scan the area for grunts, and Monferno could create a distraction. She could hear one of the grunts getting close to her, and Dawn stood up.

"Nathaniel, when those grunts comes, I'll use Monferno to distract them. You run."

Nathaniel looked ready to protest, but Dawn shoved away from her, letting out a loud whistle. She released Monferno from his poke ball, and grunts ran towards her, guided by the glow of Monferno's tail.

"You ready?" she asked.

Monferno nodded.

"It's the female intruder!" one of the grunts shouted.

Dawn heard a rush of wind, and Monferno suddenly reared back, holding his shoulder.

"Wing attack. Must be a Zubat." Dawn said. "Listen closely Monferno."

Monferno held out his hand, quickly engulfing it in fire. When the familiar rush of wind came again, Monferno spun and slammed his flaming hand down on the bat. However, more grunts had come now, and they were tailed by pokemon. Dawn found herself in a situation eerily reminiscent of the one from earlier.

"Drifloon, gust!"

Drifloon sent a draft of wind towards the Zubats. The swarm of bats slowed, giving Monferno an opening to entrap them in a blazing inferno. Still, some of them powered through, sinking their fangs into Monferno's arm. He quickly tore them off, but the damage was done.

More grunts rounded the corner, obviously guided by the loud commotion. Dawn quickly realized her situation was becoming bleaker by the minute.

Monferno backed next to her, punctures peppering his orange fur. A quick glance confirmed that at this rate, he was fighting a losing battle. Her fingers brushed Staryu's poke ball, wondering if she could try psywave. No, that was too unreliable.

A twinge of guilt blossomed in her chest as she looked at Monferno, who had begun to slow. He would only end up getting hurt. Dawn clenched her fists, and hoped that Nathaniel would be able to find his father. She raised Monferno's poke ball, and clicked the button.

* * *

Nathaniel flattened himself against the wall, hearing the sounds of fighting cease. Either Dawn defeated the grunts, or she was taken. His breathing quickened, and he wrapped his arms around himself. What was he thinking? This was a terrible idea.

Mira floated down next to him, staring at Nathaniel with their blank yellow eyes. Somehow, this calmed him, and Nathaniel took a deep breath, and pushed his glasses up the bridge of his nose. "Right. We're nearly there."

He ran ahead, into the room where he knew his father was. Inside, there were two people standing in front of a device. One was an older man, with tufts of lavender hair sticking out of his head. He was hunched over the machine. The other was far younger, with short red hair and a hooped skirt. In the corner, there was small pack of scientists that were clearly being held hostage.

"Dad!" Nathaniel instinctively yelled, recognizing his father.

"Nathaniel?" Eric asked, confused.

Before he could run up to his father, Nathaniel felt something wrap tightly around him. Looking down, he saw it was dark grey, furry tail. Attached to it was a fat, grey and white cat with sharp yellow eyes. The red haired women skipped up to him, a cheerful smile on her face.

"Hey! You must be the male intruder!" she hummed. "Must say, you're much younger than I thought you would be."

"You took Dad!" Nathaniel said.

"Dad?" Mars asked. The smile on her face widened. "No way! You must be that male intruder my grunts told me about!

She pat the cat's head. "Great job capturing him Purugly~"

"Tch. Mira-"

Mars snapped the blue pokémon out of the air, holding it in her hands. "Hey! Is this a Bronzor? They're pretty cool, aren't they!"

Nathaniel turned pink. "Well uh, thanks. My grandpa got it for me- Wait, stop trying to distract me!"

The scientist turned around, revealing red eyes. "Indeed. Stop toying with the intruder and leave him with the other hostages."

Mars pouted. "No need to be rude Charon."

The loud sound of marching filled the air, and a voice spoke: "Commander Mars! We've captured the female intruder!"

A pack of grunts came running in, dragging Dawn behind them. She looked battered, with a bruising eye and a cut on her temple. Both of her wrists were bound, and one of the grunts was holding her bag and poke balls.

"Dawn!" Nathaniel yelled.

Mars laughed, pointing at Dawn. "No way! Both of the intruders found in less than ten minutes apart! Talk about good luck~

She tapped her chin. "I must say though, you given my grunts quite the chase. Made them quite testy if I do say so myself."

"I suppose that's a good thing," Dawn replied. "After all, you kidnapped scientists. Annoying grunts pales in comparison to that."

"People refuse to believe our words," Mars said sweetly. "We've been trying to create a new world that's better than this one. Because of their refusal, Team Galactic needs to take harsher methods."

"Harsher methods involve taking Dad and his friends hostage?" Nathaniel said.

Mars waved a hand. "We needed some kind of leverage."

"Commander Mars!" one of the grunts interrupted. He had been poking through Dawn's bag, and he had found her Pokédex. "She has one of these!"

Upon seeing the device, Mars' smile slipped off her face. "You're one of the new Pokédex Holders. Of course. I'd heard about the Professor sending out trainers...

She frowned. "This changes things. I should keep you with the hostages, but I'm rather bored. How about this? We'll battle to see what happens next. Me against you."

"That doesn't sound too fun." Dawn said dryly.

Mars smiled. "Well, I'd like to see Pokédex Holder in action. I've heard about the others. Let's see if you match up to their caliber."

She snapped her fingers at the grunts, and they released Dawn from their grip, begrudgingly giving her her bag and pokémon. They still kept a tight grip on her Pokédex, shooting her a dirty look when she tried to grab it. She shot a dirty look right back. Nathaniel gulped, and looked at Mira.

"Two on two. Sounds fair, right?" Mars hummed. "If I win, I can keep that Pokédex. If you win, we Team Galactic will leave!"

* * *

**And close!**

**Once again, I apologize for the abrupt two month hiatus. Completely unintentional. December's going to be another busy month, since teachers love to wrap up units right before Winter Break begins. Still, I hope to get out the next chapter quicker. Great thanks to everyone whose given me advice, and I hope you have nice December!**

**Until next time!**

**~Book Mage~**


	7. Chapter 7: Commander Mars

"...A battle?" Dawn drawled. She tapped her chin. "Sounds rather interesting to me."

Beside her, Nathaniel let out a high-pitched squeak. "Dawn, we're talking to the leader of a crime syndicate! Not to mention she's asking for your Pokédex and-"

"I can defeat her," Dawn interrupted. "Besides, they'll leave the Windworks if I win. It's worth a go."

"Don't underestimate me~" Mars hummed, clicking her chunky white heels on the ground. "You can only use two pokémon, kay? Just so we have a fair battle."

Dawn nodded, and examined Mars' two pokémon. Zubat would be simple enough, but her ace would be a different story. Her Pokédex was still in the hands of those grunts, but it looked like the evolved version of Glameow to her. It would have to be a normal type like it's pre-evolution.

However, Monferno was badly injured, and Staryu wasn't in perfect shape either. By all means, it would be simpler to back out of the fight.

Her mind drifted to Lacey and Harold, who were waiting back in town. Lacey was probably getting chewed out by Ophelia for her trick. If she could get Nathaniel and Eric back, their family would be whole again. That's was what important.

Her eyes drew to Drifloon, who was trying to get towards his family. Anytime he got close, one of the grunts would swat him away. Dawn tapped the cotton puff on his head.

"Yo. Wanna fight together?" she said.

Drifloon's eyes flickered from his family to Mars, and nodded. He squinted, giving a few experimental swings. Dawn laughed.

"I see. Let's go then.

She turned to Mars. "Challenge accepted."

Mars gave her a sweet smile. She snapped her fingers, and Zubat moved immediately. He flung a pile of toxic sludge towards Drifloon, splattering him in the liquid. Drifloon's body took on a deep violet tinge, and he shivered.

"Tch. Toxic." Dawn said. "Dammit. Drifloon, astonish!"

Drifloon faded into the darkness of the dim room, and Zubat looked around for his opponent. Drifloon suddenly appeared behind him, letting out a shriek. Zubat jumped back, giving his opponent a chance to blast him with a gust of wind.

"Now Drifloon!" Dawn shouted.

Drifloon wrapped his black strings around disoriented Zubat's body, and swung him into the ground with a thud. Nathaniel winced.

Mars frowned, and waved her hand. Zubat sprang up, sinking his teeth into Drifloon's body. Drifloon seized, and he spun rapidly in an attempt to get him off. Zubat's grip loosened, and Drifloon shook him off with one final jerk.

"Now, finish him off with a gust!" Dawn shouted.

Her partner followed her orders, and he slammed Zubat against the wall with a strong gust of wind. Zubat crumpled to the ground, unconscious. Mars shook her head in disappointment, and pulled an ultra ball off her belt.

"Pathetic," she muttered, returning Zubat. "Purugly, take the field! We mustn't lose this battle!"

Purugly moved from her position beside the hostages, looking at Drifloon with slitted eyes. Within seconds she faded from view before she struck Drifloon from behind. Drifloon was sent crashing down to the ground.

"You good Drifloon?" Dawn muttered.

Drifloon floated back up. He gave Dawn a wink, and turned back to battle. He shrunk into himself, his body becoming several times smaller. With that, he dodged one of Purugly claws, and shot a gust at her.

Mars snapped her fingers. "That won't do~ Purugly, faint attack!"

Like before, Purugly faded from view, and delivered a sudden strike. With him disoriented, she took the opportunity to wrap her tail around him, slamming him over and over again. When released, Drifloon finally sunk to the ground.

"Faint attack. Even minimize couldn't help," Dawn sighed. "Staryu, let's go!"

Staryu flew out of her poke ball, scratches still present on her skin. Dawn bit her lip. "Recover first!"

A creamy glow cloaked Staryu, closing the wounds on her skin. It was useless though, as Purugly pounced again, slamming Staryu onto the ground. Staryu squirmed under Purugly's grip, the latter taking the opportunity to claw at Staryu's face.

"Tch. This isn't good…" Dawn muttered. Her eyes squinted. "Hm?"

Something was up with Purugly. She was moving slower than before, and odd splotches were present on her body. As if she was damaged by something. Dawn's eyes widened as she recalled one of Drifloon's abilities.

She grinned. "Oh, I see… This is good. Staryu, water gun one last time!"

Staryu delivered a sharp blast of water, propelling Purugly into the wall behind her. She crumpled to the ground.

"Purugly, get up!" Mars shouted, snapping her fingers.

Purugly didn't move. Mars frowned, and walked over to Purugly. Her eyes widened. Purugly was unconscious.

"Purugly!?" Mars said. "That's impossible! You should be at much more power!"

Dawn grinned. "Don't you recall what Drifloon's ability is?"

Nathaniel gasped. "Aftermath! When he fainted, he dealt damage to Purugly, didn't he?"

Dawn nodded. "That's right. All Staryu had to do was finish the job.

She returned Staryu, then looked up at Mars. "I believe you need to hold up your end of the deal. I won. And one more thing...

Dawn walked over, and wrenched her Pokédex from the stunned Grunt's hands. "I'll be taking this back too~"

Mars' face was red, and she clenched her fists. Before she could spit out a reply, the scientist behind her let out a laugh.

"Oh no. On the contrary, this isn't a loss at all for us. Thank you Mars, for holding her off. I've collected all the energy we need. You're a great help."

"I wasn't doing it for you!" Mars snarled. "You only joined us recently. Don't think you can boss me around, let alone believe we're on the same level!"

She shook her head in disgust, and grabbed a third poke ball. Dawn tensed. A small, blue pokémon took the field. A red blossom was on her head, with four orange leaves poking out of it. A trace of drool rolled out of her mouth as she awaited an order from her trainer.

Dawn scanned the pokémon, only for the Pokédex to buzz. The words 'No result found' appeared on the screen. "Why isn't it showing up?"

Mars ignored her. "It's time we took our leave. You know what to do Gloom."

The flower atop Gloom's head swelled, releasing a shower of green spores. Dawn frowned as the spores fell onto her skin. "Huh...?"

Her vision became blurry, and her feet gave out as she collapsed to the ground. Everything faded to a soft black.

* * *

"-wn! Miss Dawn!"

Dawn awoke to a feeling of being shaken, and she blinked open her eyes. In front of her was a familiar dark-haired man in a beige trench coat. Beside him was an odd, blue pokémon, with orange cheek pouches. His hand was glowing a bright purple, poised to attack.

"...Looker?" Dawn asked. "Is that you? What're you doing here?"

Looker puffed out his chest. "It is me! I discovered a lead about the nefarious organization spreading havoc in the Valley Windworks! Alas, I was too late. By the time I arrived, all were gone."

"They're gone!?" Nathaniel yelled. He had similarly just awoken, his brown hair ruffled. "Interpol Agent! They knocked us out with a Gloom!"

The rest of the hostages awoke quickly, all disoriented. Drifloon soared over to his family, letting out a distressed squeak. All of them held each other closely, reunited.

"Nathaniel!" Eric shouted, grabbing his son. "I'm so glad you're safe! Are Ophelia and Lacey fine?"

"Yeah Dad," Nathaniel answered. "They've got Grandpa with them."

One of the scientists had gotten to her feet, and hurried towards the computers. She began to type away furiously, searching for something Dawn presumed was important. Soon after, the scientist muttered a curse, and slammed her fist against the keyboard.

"They said they had to collect pokémon and energy no matter what," she mumbled. "It was about creating a new universe, or so they claimed. None of what they said made a lick of sense."

"Well, I'll require an interrogation with all of you," Looker boomed, regaining everyone's full attention. "No one is leaving until I get the full story!"

* * *

"That was a mess," Nathaniel sighed. "Mom's gonna kill us Dawn."

Eric nodded somberly. "It's been nice meeting you."

"Lacey'll be getting the brunt of it too," Dawn mumbled. "She helped me sneak out."

"Nah, she'll be fine," Nathaniel replied. "She's amazing when it comes to playing dumb. As for us two... You better have a will ready."

"Harold's there!" Dawn protested. "Surely he'll stop his daughter-in-law from doing anything too drastic."

"Best case scenario, I'm grounded for two weeks." Nathaniel said.

"Well, that is what you get for sneaking out," Eric replied. "I, on the other hand, was kidnapped, so I have a legitimate excuse."

A silence fell over the trio as they re-entered Floaroma Town. Like before, it was still dead silent, all the lights still out. Upon arriving back home, Nathaniel let out a gulp. Eric walked up to the wooden door, lightly tapping.

"Maybe I can just climb in through my bedroom window," Nathaniel mused. "I went out that way."

"Nathaniel, you gotta chill," Dawn replied. "Ophelia seems cool. What's the worst that could happen?"

"I know…" Nathaniel said. "Still, I can't help but be nervous."

They were cut off by the door opening, revealing Harold on the doorstep. He stared at the three of them for a few seconds, before a grin overtook his face.

"Eric! Nathaniel! Dawn! You're all back!" he shouted. "Ophelia, Lacey, all of them are here!"

"Daddy!"

Lacey ran by Harold, jumping into her father's arms. Eric grunted, but gave his daughter a bright smile. "Lacey! Oh, it's good to see you again! Shouldn't you be in bed though?"

"I was too worried about you guys to sleep!" Lacey cried.

Eric's expression softened. "We're all fine now Lacey. Slightly injured, but fine. How about we all head inside?"

* * *

"Nathaniel Thomas Lenhe! What on earth were you thinking!"

Harold calmly sipped from his steaming cup of tea. Sans Ophelia and Nathaniel, all of them were huddled in the living room, sipping the tea Ophelia had brewed. Even Lacey was still up, playing with Lossie and Shelly in the corner.

Having finished his cup, Harold set it down on the table. "Dawn, what you did was insanely dangerous."

"Well, it worked in the end, right?" Dawn replied, holding a bag of frozen peas to her black eye. "I think it was worth it."

"You got hurt," Harold argued. "This 'Team Galactic' sounds like a dangerous group."

"That type of recklessness will catch up later," Eric agreed. "You may feel invincible, but you aren't."

"I know, I know." Dawn said, grabbing her cup of tea. "I'll try to be more careful."

Harold didn't look convinced, but dropped the subject. The room fell silent, and they all listened in on the argument that was occurring in the kitchen.

"Nathaniel, you had me worried sick! You could've been killed!" Ophelia shouted, her voice filled with anger.

"I wanted to get Dad back!" Nathaniel shot back.

"And this was the best option in your mind!? Pompom couldn't handle those grunts!"

"Maybe if you let me out on a journey, I could get better!"

"Not this again! Nathaniel, it's dangerous out there, and you're far too young!"

"Well Mom, Dawn's on a journey of her own, and she's two years younger than me!"

All the eyes in the room turned to Dawn, who suddenly looked very interested in her tea.

"Ahem," she coughed. "So, I've heard there's a large storm coming?"

Harold nodded. "Yes. You should probably wait until it all blows over. You don't want to get caught in that while in Eterna Forest."

"Mm," Dawn replied. "I should probably get a spot at the Pokémon Center then. I'll head out after I finish my tea."

Everyone seemed pleased, and the argument in the kitchen quieted down. It seemed Ophelia and Nathaniel had realized all of them were listening in.

Lacey looked up from her toys, a mischievous gleam in her eye. "What's more important is that you and big bro get along well. Do you have a crush on him?"

Dawn choked on her tea.

* * *

The next morning, Dawn awoke to the sound of thunder. She sat up in her bed, shooting a glance at the window. Outside, sheets of rain plummeted from the sky, and Dawn saw that the town was already soaked.

"Eugh, they weren't kidding about the storm." she yawned. "Thank God I'm not out in Eterna Forest."

Getting up for the day, Dawn quickly got changed into her usual outfit. She then turned her attention to her town map. After she grabbed a nearby pen from one of the desks, Dawn marked down all the cities she still needed to visit.

"Eterna for sure is next," she muttered, chewing on her pen. "I guess Hearthrome is after that. Then I can get Veilstone, Sunnyshore and Pastoria all in one go. Then Canalave, and I can head north to Snowpoint and get my final badge."

Afterwards, she could simply hop on a boat to the Battle Frontier. Still, there was a nagging feeling in Dawn, as if she were forgetting something important. She shrugged. It was likely nothing.

Dawn shot a look at the clock, seeing that it was already mid-morning. It seemed late nights had finally caught up to her. Dawn grabbed her umbrella, the fabric decorated with patterns of Cherubi.

She exited the Pokémon Center, the rain beating down on her umbrella as she walked to the Lenhe house. Surely one of them would be awake by now.

Dodging most of the big puddles, Dawn managed to reach the home minimally soaked. Although, her new boots were now covered in mud stains. Sigh. After ringing the doorbell a couple times, Eric opened the door, a cup of coffee in hand.

"Dawn?" he said, squinting his eyes. "Nice to see you. Both the kids are up."

Dawn entered the home, setting her umbrella to the side. Lacey immediately ran up, and hugged her leg.

"Dawn!" she greeted. "You didn't leave Floaroma! You left the house in such a hurry last night, I thought you were going for good!"

"Well uh, I was tired," Dawn awkwardly replied, remembering Lacey's question from the previous night. "It's nice to see you too!"

Harold stumbled into the landing, Lossie and Shelly both settled on his shoulders. "Nice to see you back Dawn."

"Did you have a safe journey?" Ophelia asked, stepping down from the stairs.

"Yup," Dawn replied. "It's just a short walk."

It was beginning to get a bit cramped in the doorway with all the people. Nathaniel came running down the stairs, and smacked his forehead upon seeing everyone in the doorway.

"Just come with me Dawn." Nathaniel sighed. "You guys are smothering her."

Lacey wiggled her eyebrows at the pair of them, and Nathaniel's cheeks pinked. "For God's sake Lacey, it's not like that!"

He shook his head, and pulled Dawn into his room. He took a seat at his computer, taking off his glasses so he could pinch the bridge of his nose.

"I'm so sorry for my family," Nathaniel muttered. "I swear, they're all insane."

"Eh, all families are weird in their own ways," Dawn said, waving a hand.

"Mhmm." Nathaniel replied.

"Trust me. My mom used to be a coordinator back in the day," Dawn answered. "She was apparently quite the celebrity. Still heads to Heathrome from time to time. Every now and then we get sent some weird fanmail.

Her brow furrowed. "My Mom always gets really flustered by what's inside it, and sends me to shred in the blender. What she doesn't know is that I used to look at it from time to time as a child. Never making that mistake again."

"What about your Dad?" Nathaniel said. "Where's he in all of this?"

Dawn hesitated. "He's… away. He sends me gifts from time to time."

"Oh," was all Nathaniel had to say. "Any siblings?"

"No, just me and Mom," Dawn replied. "And I guess Staryu and Mom's pokémon as well. I've got a friend too, who I grew up with. He's on his journey too."

"You two are both lucky," Nathaniel grumbled. "I'd like to go out sometime too, but Mom won't let me."

"You could always run away," Dawn offered. "You've got Mira and Pompom."

"I don't think that would end well," Nathaniel said. "I'll likely just be forced to wait until I'm eighteen, unless Dad or Grandpa can convince her."

"Maybe it's for the best," Dawn replied. "Since the beginning of my journey, I've had my dreams crushed, fought spacesuit wearing weirdos twice, and gotten beat up by said weirdos. And I've gone to only four towns so far. Not exactly what I had in mind when I thought about going on a journey."

"Fair enough." Nathaniel conceded.

Dawn gazed around his room, her eyes falling on the brightly coloured poster in the corner. "Hm? Is this a Battle Frontier poster?"

"Yeah," Nathaniel said, sitting down on his bed. "Shame about the rules put in place. I suppose I'll wait for it to open in a year."

"I can't wait for that year to happen," Dawn admitted. "I've got to help with the Pokedex, and as much as I hate gyms, they're the best bet I got."

"Gyms..." Nathaniel sighed. "I'd like to give those a try too. If only Mom could loosen up a bit."

* * *

For Dawn, time had flown by fast over the next few days. True to Harold's warning, the rain had been relentless in it's barrage. Dawn was mildly worried about the amount of water, but Eric assured her that those kinds of things happened yearly.

Lacey had thankfully not made any further comments on her or Nathaniel's love life. Nathaniel himself had rambled on about his journey, and his goal for taking on gyms and the Battle Frontier. Dawn had to applaud him, he had planned meticulously for this.

Dawn sipped a mug of hot chocolate, watching the rain fall outside the window. It was finally beginning to let up, and Dawn hoped everything would be dry enough in a day or two.

"Thanks for the hot chocolate Ophelia," Dawn said. "It's nice on gloomy days like this.

"But then again, this whole last week has been gloomy," she added.

"I'm guessing Twinleaf Town doesn't get this much rain?" Ophelia asked, an amused look on her face.

"Not really," Dawn muttered. "I mean, yeah it's really wet for the first few weeks of spring, but that's 'cause of the snow."

"Do you ever miss home?" Ophelia said.

Dawn shrugged. "Kinda. I call Mom every now and then though, so it isn't too bad. Besides, I've been wanting to go on this journey for awhile."

"I see," Ophelia said, a troubled look on her face.

"Is there something that's bothering you?" Dawn said.

"It's about Nathaniel," Ophelia sighed.

Dawn brought her mug to her lips. "Oh dear." she mumbled.

"Can't you tell him it's dangerous Dawn?" Ophelia asked. "I know your mother let you leave, but with Team Galactic and everything, it's far too dangerous."

Dawn sipped her hot chocolate, not giving an answer. Truth be told, the last thing she wanted was to be roped into the family drama, but it seemed she had no choice in the matter.

"Already told him about that, Ophelia," Dawn replied. "You know how teenagers are. Whatever shi- er, stuff is going on between you guys, I can't help there."

"Fair enough," Ophelia said. "I'm just worried about Nathaniel. So many things could go wrong.

She sat down at the table. "But that's enough about that. Is there anything in Floaroma you'd like to see?"

"There is that huge flower shop," Dawn said. "Then again, I don't have many berries on me. They only sell contest equipment too.

Dawn shuddered. "I'm really bad at those though, so I don't think it'd be worth the investment."

"Eric and I used to do contests back in the day," Ophelia said, a dreamy look in her eyes. "Those were the days..."

"Ah yes, I recall you two meeting after you beat him in a Great Rank contest."

The pair of them turned to see Harold entering the kitchen, Geodude by his side. He laughed, shaking his head. "You two were at each other's throats the entire time. I'm guessing you'll be going to Hearthrome Dawn?"

"I'll be heading to Eterna first," Dawn replied. "I need to defeat Gardenia. Gonna have to head through the forest though."

Both Ophelia and Harold shivered. Dawn frowned. "Is the forest that bad?"

"Not bad," Harold assured. "Filled with bugs and wild grass, but that's not the main concern. If you ever see a Chateau there in the middle of the night, or doing the day for that matter, don't enter it."

"Why?" Dawn said. "Does the owner get really mad or something?"

Ophelia hesitated. "Weird things happen in there. Ever since I was a young girl, my parents warned me to never approach it. They said that people who enter never exit the same person."

"I know you like to jump into danger, but you should really avoid it." Harold stated.

"Duly noted." Dawn said, helping herself to a handful of marshmallows. "Here's hoping no one's that big of an idiot to end up in it."

* * *

"Well, Budew, I think we're lost."

Barry scratched his chin, looking at the expanse of greenery around him. The only thing illuminating their path was the moonlight filtering through the trees, and even that provided minimal light.

Usually, he was filled with energy, but even he was beginning to tire. He would rather not spend the night strapped to a tree either, so Barry contemplated how he could get out of this situation.

He shrugged. "May as well keep walking Budew. I'm sure we'll find our way out soon."

And to get some healing supplies, too. He was running low, and both Prinplup and Staravia were close to fainting from their multiple run-ins with both trainers and wild pokémon. Plus he still soaked from a sudden downpour from earlier.

His wishes were answered by a flash of golden light that caught his eye. Barry turned his head. In the distance, light spilled from beyond the trees coming from a large mansion.

Worries gone, Barry ran through the trees towards the light. He pushed past the final few branches, and breathed a sigh of relief at what he saw in the clearing.

Past two open steel gates was a brilliant Chateau, aglow with numerous old-fashioned lamps. The Chateau itself was built from stone and wood, statues lining the large grassy fields before it. Barry picked up Budew, holding him closely as they walked past the neatly-trimmed shrubbery to the front doors.

Barry grabbed one of the brass knockers, and tapped on the wooden doors. Within seconds, they opened, revealing a kindly butler, with silver hair and a monocle.

"Ah, another traveler," he said. "Seems many visitors are coming tonight."

"Sorry about that," Barry replied. "Can you give me some directions? I have no idea which way I need to go to get to Eterna Forest."

"It's very dark," the butler replied. "Do stay the night. I'd hate for a young trainer like yourself to be sleeping in a wet forest."

"Okay then," Barry replied, slightly off put by the answer. "I guess we'll be staying the night Budew."

The butler smiled. "Come right in then."

He opened the door wider, allowing Barry to cross the threshold. As soon as he did, a shiver ran down his spine. Something was off.

"Barry?"

Barry turned his head, and groaned. "You've got to be kidding me. You're here?"

Before him was Lucas, who was in the midst of hanging up his coat. He frowned. "I could say the same. What brings you here?"

"Got lost," Barry muttered. "You?"

"Same." Lucas replied, clearly embarrassed.

"Oh, you two boys know each other~!"

Barry spun again, this time facing a girl. She was dressed in a pale pink frock that was covered in ribbons, and a matching bow was atop her coppery curls. In her hands was a lacy parasol.

"I'm Rill," the girl greeted. "It's very nice to meet you two. I happened to be lost as well!

Her bright purple eyes glinted. "I feel like this will be quite a fun time."

* * *

"Hm, what to do next~"

Dawn hummed to herself as she shoved a pile of homework into her bag. With those damned linear equations done for, she was in a much better mood. At any rate, she would be smooth sailing in terms of school. Staying in Floaroma for a day or two during the storms sure gave her a lot of spare time.

Once she finished zipping up her bag, Dawn shot a glance at the clock, wincing when she saw the time. It was getting late fast these days. Shouldering her bag, Dawn prepared to head up to her bedroom.

"Excuse me?"

Dawn looked up to see a woman with thick, forest green hair in a braid approach her. The woman fiddled with her brown bag, looking nervous. She was dressed in a tasteful black and green dress, with matching boots and mint cardigan.

"Hello," she said softly. "I heard you were the girl who fought off Team Galactic."

"Yeah, I am," Dawn confirmed. "What brings you here?"

"I wanted some help looking for something important in the Eterna Forest," the girl replied. "My name is Cheryl. I'd like some assistance."

"Why?" Dawn said, her eyes falling on the heal balls attached to her bag. "You seem like a pretty powerful trainer."

"It's easy to get lost in the forest," Cheryl answered, twisting her fingers through her braid. "Also, there have been some concerning rumours about the forest as of late, so I'd rather not be alone."

"Hm," Dawn replied. "Sounds alright then. I need to go through anyway. Wanna meet up at noon tomorrow? I've got some stuff to do first."

"Of course," Cheryl said. "I'll be waiting at the entrance of the forest."

"It's a deal then," Dawn drawled. "Nice to meet you Cheryl. Name's Dawn."

* * *

Parting time was always bittersweet. Dawn was sad to say farewell to Lacey and the others, but she needed to keep moving. Regardless, her few days with the Lenhe family had been enjoyable.

"It's been nice meeting you guys," she drawled. "I'll be sure to visit sometime."

Lacey nodded, holding Shelly and Lossie tightly in her arms. "When you return, you better bring some souvenirs! I heard the Battle Frontier has a nice gift shop!"

Dawn laughed. "I'll do just that Lacey.

She turned her attention to Nathaniel. "Stay cool. Hopefully we meet again sometime."

"Right. Have a good time!"

"Stay safe Dawn." Harold said.

Dawn gave him a thumbs-up. "Will do Harold. See you guys!"

She waved, and took off running towards the gate. Cheryl was already waiting there, a chansey by her side.

"Are you ready to leave?" she asked.

"Yup! Dawn yelled. "Let's get through this forest!"

Cheryl smiled sweetly. "Just one more thing. I think there's someone waiting for you."

She pointed upwards. Dawn looked up, seeing Drifloon floating in the air. He appeared to be waiting for her.

"Hey it's you, from the Windworks!" Dawn said. "What brings you here?"

Drifloon flew close to her, and swung his strings. It looked akin to someone throwing a punch. He then gestured to the badge on Dawn's scarf.

"I think he wants to battle with you." Cheryl said.

"What about your family?" Dawn asked.

Drifloon pointed behind him, where his family waved. Some of them looked upset, but waved Drifloon goodbye nonetheless.

Dawn smiled. "I see. Well then, welcome to the team Drifloon!"

* * *

When Barry awoke, he discovered that he was no longer in the glorious chateau he had entered the night prior.

He sat up in his bed, pulling the hole-filled sheets off his body. The entire room was dim, save for a flickering candle in the corner. Dust choked his lungs when he tried to inhale. Upon closer inspection, most of the floorboards in the room were rotted and covered in mold. Budew looked ready to pass out at the sight, and curled up to Barry.

"What the hell happened to this place?" he muttered.

* * *

**So uh, yeah, I'm back after another three months. Hi? I don't really have much to say this time. Changed my username. School's cool. With March Break here, my school's also shutting down because of Coronavirus. Gives me time to write at least.**

**The next chapter is almost done, and I'm having fun writing it, so here's to hoping that I don't take three months to get it out. Then again, that's what I said last time. Who knows.**

**Until next time!**

**~Book Mage~**


	8. Chapter 8: Ghostly Encounters

**I'm back! And it hasn't been three months since the last update!**

**In all seriousness though, I've completely detached from linear time thanks to quarantine. The days pass by so fast. **

**Reviews:**

**BlueMapple [Chapter 1]: Erm... I'm unsure how to reply to this. I understand your reasoning on Barry being a tad immature. Yes his whole stunt was idiotic, but to be fair, he is pretty young. I wasn't very intelligent back then either. Neither he nor Dawn quite expected it turn out that way, and both of them have a penchant for being reckless. Thank you for your review though!**

* * *

"Alright Lucas, you're the smart one. How do we get out of this mansion?"

Barry gave the doorknob one final tug. It didn't budge, and he cursed. Beside Barry, Lucas had taken to examining the locks, his brow furrowed. Rill tapped at the rotted floorboards with her parasol, squeaking when one of them split in half. The entire Chateau was dim, the only light source being the small windows high above them.

"Just because I'm smart, doesn't mean I know everything." Lucas replied. "I'm more worried about what happened last night."

"Well, yeah. Either we all vividly hallucinated a butler, or this place is haunted." Barry said. "Either way, I want out."

"Believe me, I'd love nothing more than to be back in the forest." Lucas said. "Being stuck here with you is far less enjoyable."

"Jerk."

Rill finally spoke up, stepping between the two. "Well, it seems we've been locked in here by something quite unearthly. Can Staravia reach the windows?"

"They're too small for us to fit through," Barry said, "I checked before you woke up."

"Well, there's got to be a way out of here," Lucas said. "There must be a logical explanation for this."

As he spoke that, the Chateau shook. The chandeliers above them suddenly lit up with purple flames, casting an eerie glow. Barry held his forehead, the feeling of vertigo making him sick. The temperature of the room dropped to ice-cold.

"...Great job Lucas," Barry deadpanned. "You've really screwed us over now."

The sound of footsteps filled the air, and a phantom appeared in front of the stairs, beckoning to them. He was the same butler from before, except his suit was smeared with soot, and his skin was tinged a sickly gray.

"Sebastian!" Rill shouted.

'Sebastian' turned on his heel, and faded away as he stepped towards one of the rooms.

"Should we follow him?" Lucas said.

"Well, we've got no other choice, do we?" Rill said brightly.

Barry shrugged, and they began to walk through the foyer towards the dining room. Along the way, they passed a wall of paintings. Each one depicted a former Chatelaine, and as soon as Barry stepped in the sight of the final painting, it let out a blood-curdling shriek, it's features twisting demonically.

Someone screamed, and a pokémon emerged from the painting, a wide grin on its face. Lucas moved quickly, pulling out his Pokédex.

"It's a Haunter!" he yelled. "Ponyta, flame wheel!"

Ponyta cloaked herself with flames, and smashed the ghost into the wall. One of the paintings were sent ablaze, quickly blackening. Rill shrieked even louder, and covered her eyes. Lucas fished an ultra ball out of his bag, throwing it at Haunter. With one quick rattle, it was caught.

"That was unpleasant." Lucas said. "We'll need to be on guard."

Barry's face was pale. He nodded numbly, grabbing his other two poké balls. "Prinplup, Budew, let's go."

Lucas released Shieldon, and they turned to Rill. She shrugged. "Sorry boys. I've got no pokémon."

Lucas raised an eyebrow.

"No worries Rill! We'll keep you safe!" Barry said, grabbing her hand.

"Thank you Barry~" Rill said.

Lucas rubbed his temples, letting out a sigh. "Let's just keep moving."

They entered through the doorway to find themselves in the dining room. There was a single, long table covered in a stained white lace tablecloth. Some of the chairs were toppled over, their legs burnt to cinders. Most eerily though, was the fact that all of the plates and cutlery were suspended in the air.

Barry let out a low whistle, and turned around. "Yep, I'm out."

Lucas grabbed him by the shoulder. "Not so fast. We need to investigate this."

"'We need to investigate this.'" Barry repeated scornfully. "If we were in a horror movie, you'd be the first one to die."

"Investigating sounds like a great idea to me!" Rill said.

She skipped towards the table, her pink mary-janes clacking against the floor. As soon as she came close, the flateware froze. Rill smiled.

The rusted cutlery began to soar towards them.

Rill let out a shout. She opened her parasol, shielding them from the opening attacks. Grotle sprung forward, the thick shell on his back protecting the rest of them.

Barry grabbed Lucas' sleeve, and dragged both him and Rill out of the kitchen. He slammed the doors shut behind them. The sound of breaking porcelain filled their ears as it struck the closed doors. Rill looked down at her now-shredded parasol mournfully.

"Phooey. It was brand-new too." she said.

"This is why I wanted to go!" Barry hissed.

"Let's keep moving." Lucas muttered. "There may be something in one of the other rooms."

* * *

"So, we're looking for one of those mossy rocks, correct?" Dawn said.

"Yes," Cheryl replied softly. "The rock is said to have some odd properties, and I'd like to see it for myself."

The pair entered the forest, and temperature took a steep dip. With the sun now shrouded by the thick foliage, Dawn felt the winter chill creep up on her. She shuddered, and tugged her scarf up to her face.

"You should release a pokémon," Cheryl said, grabbing a friend ball out of her bag. "There's many trainers here."

"Trainers huh?" Dawn asked. She grinned. "Sounds like a great way to train for Gardenia."

She released Monferno, his fiery tail illuminating the dim forest. Dawn was sure that the grass was damp enough to avoid any accidental fires.

Monferno kept a firm grip on his tail, lighting the way for Cheryl, Dawn and Chan. Cheryl's firm gaze scanned the forest area, a determined look in her eyes. To Dawn, the forest looked like nothing more than a bunch of wild grass, but Cheryl was convinced there was something more.

Dawn saw a silhouette out of the corner of her eye, and she whipped around to see a shadow in the wild grass. She ran in to investigate, ignoring Cheryl's shouts. Just then, a buneary shot out of the grass, ears tightly rolled. The ears snapped up, punching Dawn in the leg. Dawn cursed, holding her shin. Monferno ran past her, determined to exact revenge for his trainer. He swung a punch at Buneary's face, sending the bunny soaring back into the wild grass.

Monfenro dusted off his shoulder, clearly pleased. Suddenly, silvery strands of silk wrapped around him, causing his arms to be pinned to his sides. From the grass came a glaring wurmple.

"Oh dear!" Cheryl shouted. "Chan, egg bomb!"

A large oval slammed into the opposing wurmple, causing him to roll back a couple times. Poisoned barbs shot out from his skin, piercing Monferno's skin. Monferno stumbled back, losing his balance.

"Oh shit!" Dawn yelled as Monferno fell back first onto the grass. Said grass burst into flames.

"Finish off the Wurmple, Chan!" Cheryl said. "Dawn, put out the flames!"

"Right, right!" Dawn said. "Staryu, use a water gun!"

Staryu flew out, and looked at the blaze. They shook their head, and quelled the flames with some well-placed beams of water. In the meantime, Wurmple had wriggled off.

"Maybe Monferno should return to his poké ball," Cheryl suggested. "Even though his light is useful, his capacity to set things on fire is not."

"Agreed," Dawn said. "Let's keep on moving."

* * *

"Why would the ghost be chilling in a storage room?" Barry asked, peeking through one of the rusted storage racks.

"You never know," Lucas replied. "Perhaps he died here. There's plenty of dangerous objects in this room. He could've gotten impaled."

That's really morbid, man."

Rill had been silent the whole time, keeping an eye out for any ghosts. She used her parasol like a walking stick, tapping it as she walked. The constant tapping noise it produced calmed Barry's frayed nerves.

That said, he was having a killer headache. He chalked it up to not getting a decent sleep last night.

Barry poked through one of the shelves, looking for anything or interest. All that was there was outdated toys and dusty cardboard boxes. Personally, if Barry were a ghost, he would've haunted somewhere more exciting than a storage room.

Thankfully, Lucas was finally ready to keep on moving after some thorough investigation. After leaving the storage room, they began to warily move throughout the hallways, keeping a sharp eye on the paintings hanging on the walls. They all packed close together, each person looking in a different direction.

The manor was dead quiet, save for the crackling flames that crawled up around them. Lucas walked with purpose, his shoes echoing with every step.

Barry however, swayed on his feet. His head pounded with every step, and his feet felt like weights. He was suddenly feeling very tired. Lucas said something, but he didn't hear it.

Rill's gaze turned to Barry, and shouted, pointing her parasol at something behind him. Lucas' looked at the same thing, his eyes widening. Shieldon sprung into action, diving at Barry.

Barry raised both of his arms in defense, but Shieldon soared past him. Barry's hearing cleared, and a weight was lifted off his shoulders. He still felt weak, but he wanted to know what Rill and Lucas were worried about.

He turned behind him, seeing a large, bipedal ghost. A wide grin was on its face, and it was easily dancing around Shieldon's attacks.

"What the-" Barry said. "Staravia, peck! Budew, stun spore!"

Staravia spiraled towards the ghost, driving her beak into his body. The ghost phased away. Budew shook, and a shower of yellow spores flew out of his body. It floated down onto the ghost. With that, it's joints locked up, and it collapsed to the ground, twitching.

"That thing was in your shadow," Rill said, her face ashen. "I think it's called Gengar?"

Lucas nodded. "I remember my dad talking about them. They hide in shadows."

Barry looked at the flaming walls, which cast shadows everywhere. Almost immediately, dozens of blinking eyes appeared in them. Barry swore. Swarms of Gengars poured out of the shadows, their loud snickering filling his ears.

"Dang it!" Barry shouted. "Prinplup, bubblebeam!"

Prinplup let out a swarm of bubbles, staving off the swarm of ghosts. Staravia picked off any that came close with his pecks, while Budew stunned a couple. Unfortunately, there were too many ghosts, and they were quickly overpowered.

The flames on the walls sputtered out, plunging the world into darkness. Barry screamed. Something tugged at his leg, and Barry shouted again.

* * *

Soon afterwards, the flames sputtered back into existence, lighting up the hallway once more. Rill held her parasol tightly, poised to attack.

"Lucas, where's Barry?" she asked.

Lucas snapped his head, counting everyone there. "He's gone...? Shieldon's missing too.

He grabbed Rill's arm, trying to keep his voice steady. "We should keep moving. There must be archives here somewhere. Hopefully, we'll find some answers there."

* * *

"Do you think we're getting close?" Dawn said, brushing sweaty strands of hair out of her face. "I'm beginning to get tired of the constant barrage of wurmples."

"Patience is key Dawn," Cheryl said. "We've explored most of this forest, so we must be getting close."

They turned a corner, and found a nest of white and lavender silk before them. Upon closer inspection, it wasn't silk, but dozens of silcoon and cascoon.

"Ick," Dawn said. "That's a lot of bugs."

Cheryl's eyes were on the rock they had congealed around. "Dawn, look!"

"Eh?" Dawn said, following Cheryl's gaze. In the center of the clearing was a large, grey rock covered in green moss. "Hey, it's the rock!"

"We'll need to be careful," Cheryl said, returning Chan. "Vee, let's go!"

An eevee flew out in Chan's place, his eyes widening upon seeing the rock. He let out an excited yip, ready to run towards it.

"Careful Vee," Cheryl laughed. "We need to go slow."

They tiptoed over the mass of cocoons, Dawn letting out an audible 'icks' at times. Things seemed to be going well until Vee got too excited, and jumped onto a silcoon. It's red eyes shot open, and it flailed, sending Vee flying. He landed on more cocoons, all of them waking up.

"Oh wow." Dawn said. "This isn't good."

One of the cascoon he had landed on cracked, two green wings poking out. A purple moth emerged, an unpleasant look on it's face. She turned her blank yellow eyes to Vee, and roared, shooting slashes of air at him.

"Vee, bite!" Cheryl shouted.

"It's a Dustox!" Dawn said. "Drifloon, gust!"

Vee sprang up at the dustox, sinking his jaws into the bug's soft underbelly. Drifloon spun around, sending a gust of air towards the Dustox. Dustox wavered, and crashed to the ground below. Vee quickly bailed out, landing on the mossy rock.

"That wasn't too difficult," Dawn said. "Must be that he just evolved."

Cheryl's attention was affixed on her eevee. "Vee!"

Dawn looked at Vee to find he was brightly glowing. He stretched out, becoming larger, and his brown body faded to a creamy shade. Green leaf-like fur curled up his legs, and a tuft of green fur sprouted on his head.

"Leafeon..." Dawn said, scanning the pokémon. "Is this the power of the mossy rock?"

"It must be," Cheryl said. "Leafeon evolves through a leaf stone usually, so perhaps this rock works as a natural one?"

"Makes sense." Dawn reasoned.

"Regardless, this is an amazing discovery," Cheryl hummed. "It seems this was worth the trip.

She held out her arms, Vee hopped into them. Cradling Vee, Cheryl turned to Dawn. "We should find the exit now. You want to head to Eterna, no?"

"Yup," Dawn replied. "The second badge isn't going to earn itself."

The two began to walk through the forest, easily defeating any wild pokémon in there. The rays of the afternoon sun peeked through the holes between the trees, warming the cold air. Dawn shoved her numb fingers into her coat, attempting to regain some feeling in them.

Something was nagging at her mind. Cheryl seemed terrified of the Old Chateau, and Harold had warned Dawn of it before. It was troubling her. After a long period of silence save for shouted orders, Dawn finally spoke up.

"You wanted a companion because of the Old Chateau, right?" Dawn asked. "What's the big deal with that?"

Cheryl looked down. "You don't know, do you? Around sixty years ago, there lived a family in the Chateau. They were quite rich, and very influential. However, their daughter was... off."

"What do you mean by off?" Dawn said. "Get to the point."

"The girl, Lady Amaryllis had some kind of strange psychic ability," Cheryl continued. "Eterna was nothing more than a village back then, and people were terrified of the daughter. One day, the mob marched out to the Chateau, and set it ablaze."

Dawn winced. "Ouch."

"Yeah." Cheryl said. "The owner and his wife managed to escape in time, but their daughter and her butler perished in the fire. Afterwards, the Chateau was abandoned.

She shivered. "It's said that both the butler and the girl still live there to this day, haunting those who dare enter the mansion. Sometimes, you can hear their cursed screams coming from the mansion.

"The one thing that's always stuck in my mind is the tricks they play," Cheryl finished. "The tales always warn of the ghost's schemes. Everything is a game to them."

"Huh," Dawn said. "Sounds like a load of crap to me, but okay."

* * *

Lucas opened another one of the doors, and he let out a relieved sigh. "Oh good. Archives."

Said archives were a total mess, with books spilled across the floors and desks overturned. There was a thick coating of dust over the entire room, and Lucas immediately sneezed. Rill giggled. Lucas scratched his neck, his cheeks pink.

"I'm going to start looking through some of these. Want to help?" he said.

Rill nodded, and they both began to pour through the books in the archives. Much to Lucas' chagrin, most of the books were covered in dirt, or had whole pages entirely ripped from them. A majority of them held little information important to the task at hand.

Lucas set down another book. He looked at the neat stack of books they had organized on the table, and sighed. "We're not getting anywhere like this. I'll see if there's anything of importance on the shelves."

He stepped up the rusted ladder that was leaning on one of the bookcases, looking for anything of use. His eyes fell on the leather booklet, far above his head.

"Hm? Is that a diary?"

He reached out for it, but his grip came up short. Lucas frowned. "Shoot. It's too high up Rill."

"I may be able to help with that." Rill said.

She held out her hand, and her eyes glowed purple. The book soared off the shelf, and landed gently in Lucas' hands.

Lucas blinked. "You're a psychic. That would've been nice to know earlier."

"You never asked." Rill said.

"Psychic abilities are quite rare," Lucas said absently, flipping through the book. "Ah, this actually has something of use in it. It says that around sixty years ago, there was a Chatelaine who lived in this mansion.

Lucas squinted at the page. "Some of the ink is smudged... I think it says Lord Quinton, his wife Lady Alina, and their daughter... Amaryllis?"

"Yep," Rill muttered. "She and Sebastian died in the fire that destroyed this Chateau."

"Oh," was all Lucas had to say in reply. "That's terrible. I presume rumours of the haunting appeared soon after?"

"Correct." Rill replied. "No one visits the mansion unless they're dared do. Or if they're lured in by bored ghosts."

Lucas nodded, and grabbed another diary. This one was black, and far sleeker. "Let's see what else there is.

He raised an eyebrow. "Hm? This one has a pokémon drawn in it."

Rill hopped over, taking a closer look. The drawing looked only a couple years old, with handwriting on an electric type pokémon. There was a small sketch of a tiny, thin pokémon with lightning-shaped arms that looked like they were made of plasma. Below it were a few words.

"Something peculiar should make off with the motor," Rill read. "How curious."

"Motor," Lucas mused. He closed his eyes. "A haunted mansion, with two spirits attached. Sebastian. Amaryllis. A plasma ghost. The fire..."

His eyes shot open. He whipped around to Rill, who blinked. "Lucas? What's wrong?" she asked, her purple eyes wide.

* * *

"Man, I am so tired of this."

Barry scratched his head, letting out a sigh. "First floating knives, now being teleported to a creepy bedroom."

The bedroom he was currently in was large, and had probably belonged to a girl at some point. There was a pink, lace-covered bed in the middle of the room that almost collapsed when he and Shieldon tried to sit on it, covered with hole-ridden pillows. In the corner was a large wooden wardrobe filled to the brim with dusty old frocks.

Barry avoided looking at the large, floor length mirror in the other corner because that freaked him out. The Haunters that had kidnapped him were in a heap on the floor, easily defeated by the enraged Shieldon.

Said Shieldon was now butting his head against the wooden door that blocked their only exit. It seemed the ghosts had wished to separate them from Lucas and Rill, as the door was bolted shut.

Barry got to his feet. "Step aside Shieldon. Lemme try."

He took off, and body-checked the door with all his might. The door shook, but didn't budge. Barry rubbed his shoulder. "Damn. Whatever they reinforced this door with, it was strong."

Barry sat down on the moldy floor, scratching his chin. "All of this is so weird. I wonder what Dawn's doing right now."

Shieldon didn't have an answer for that, and took a seat next to Barry. Barry patted the pokémon's head, giving him a soft smile.

"Well, I guess we'll be spending some time together," he said. "Thanks for the save earlier! I owe you one for that."

Shieldon snorted. Barry laughed too, and looked around the room. "Looks like this used to be some girl's room. What happened here?"

He got to his feet, his weakness from earlier still persisting. Still, he walked around the bedroom, searching for anything of interest. The mirror was shattered all over the ground, as if someone had broken it in a fit of rage. The wardrobe and bed held nothing of particular interest.

Shieldon tugged on his pant leg, and Barry glanced down at him. "What is it?"

Shieldon tilted his head to the side, gesturing to a photo hanging on the wall. Barry looked at the photo, and his throat constricted. The butler was there, along with a plasma-like ghost playing with a young girl.

The most concerning fact was that the girl was clearly a younger Rill, purple eyes and all. Barry took the photo off the wall. Upon closer inspection, Barry could a date written in the corner. The photo was over sixty years old. Barry's stomach dropped.

He needed to show Lucas this. Whatever was going on, Rill was the instigator.

As if on cue, the lock on the door clicked, and Rill opened the door. Her expression was fierce, her eyes glowing.

With a shout, Barry dove towards her.

* * *

Outside of the Old Chateau, Dawn and Cheryl were passing by. Cheryl's eyes were glued on the decrepit building, her hands shaking. Dawn followed her gaze.

She shrugged. "It's probably all bull Cheryl. If you ask me-"

She was cut off by a loud scream that escaped the Chateau. Cheryl shuddered, her face paling. Dawn looked unimpressed.

"Huh," Dawn said. "So that's what they meant by the cursed screams. Kinda sounds like Barry if you ask me. Let's just keep moving."

"You don't want to check it out?" Cheryl asked. "You seem like the kind of person who'd explore a haunted mansion for fun."

"I've seen my fair share of horror movies," Dawn replied. "I'm not taking any chances. Let's just get to the exit."

* * *

After Barry had dove towards her, Rill threw up both her hands. Barry's limbs locked up, sending him to the floor with a crash.

"What the heck Barry!" Lucas shouted. "What was that for?!"

Barry got to his feet, shoving a photo in his face. "This! Rill's one of the ghosts!"

"I know." Lucas replied calmly.

"You've got to listen to me! She looks ju- What?"

Lucas held up his pointer finger. "Lady Amaryllis and her faithful butler died in a freak house fire sixty years ago. Rill's style of dressing matches that time. The Lady was rumoured to have psychic powers. Besides. Amaryllis. Rill."

Rill bit her lip. "...Fine. You've got me. I need your guy's help with something."

"Why should we help you?" Barry asked. "You and that butler lured us into here, then terrorized us with ghosts!"

"I didn't terrorize you!" Rill snapped. "Look. I need your guy's help. There's this pokémon, who's been haunting this mansion for a long time. I always try to get visitors to help me defeat Rotom, but they always run away screaming."

"I wonder why." Barry replied dryly. "Maybe if you were a bit more upfront about the whole ghost thing instead of, you know, SCARING THE CRAP OUT OF US-"

Lucas cut him off. "Will both of you stop that? I've got an idea. Rotom is in the western wing of the mansion, correct?"

Rill nodded. "They live in the television."

"Very good then," Lucas said. "We head there, defeat this Rotom, and you let us out of this mess."

No one protested his suggestion. Lucas gave a stiff smile. "Okay then. Let's do this."

* * *

"It should be right here," Rill said, pointing at a large, wooden door in front of them. "I warn you, Rotom is no joke."

"We can handle it." Lucas said grimly. "Barry, make sure Prinplup is ready."

"Got it." Barry said.

Lucas opened the door, bracing himself for any attacks. Instead, the entire room was silent save for static noises coming from a dilapidated television in the centre of the room. Barry and Rill filed in behind him, ready to attack if necessary.

"Alright Barry," Lucas said, "Rotom should be within the television. Have Prinplup soak it."

"You sure that's a good idea?" Barry replied, "If things go wrong it'll cause a fir..."

He trailed off, looking sideways at Rill. Rill rolled her eyes. "You can say the word 'fire'. I'm not going to freak."

"Right," Barry said lamely. "Prinplup, use water gun!"

A beam of water spewed out Prinplup's mouth, soaking the television. The television sparked with electricity, and the screen rippled. It glowed, and a small, orange pokémon flew out. It was wreathed with blue plasma, and a cheeky grin was on its face.

"Rotom!" Barry shouted. "Everyone attack!"

Prinplup shot another beam of water off, but Rotom swiftly dodged it. Electricity crackled around them, and they shocked Staravia. Staravia collapsed to the ground, her wings smoking. Budew was terrified, hiding behind Rill's legs. Shieldon tried to tackle Rotom, but he soared right through the ghost's body. Seeing this, Ponyta shot off a couple embers, then pinned them down.

Lucas fished a poké ball out of his bag. "Let's see how they fare."

He threw the poké ball at Rotom, sucking the pokémon in. The ball clattered once, then burst open. Rotom soared high into the air, snickering.

"Tch." Lucas muttered. "Grotle, razor leaf."

Following his trainers orders, Grotle sent a wave of leaves flying up at the Rotom. Try as they might, Rotom couldn't dodge all them. He whizzed downwards, allowing Ponyta to smash into it with some flames.

Barry let out a low whistle. "Nice. Budew, poison powder! Prinplup, pin them down!"

Budew spewed a shower of purple spores, which wafted down onto Rotom. Their body now tinted purple, Prinplup slammed them onto the ground.

Barry grinned. "Can't move if you're pinned down."

Rotom shuddered, and shocked Prinplup. Prinplup immediately jumped, her eyes widening. Rotom flew back up.

"Unless you do that." Barry sighed. "Rill, do you have any ideas?"

Rill shook her head. "Nope. By all means though, do continue. I'm very interested to see where this one goes."

Barry gave as exasperated look, and shook his head. "Budew, absorb!"

Budew squinted, siphoning off energy from Rotom. Rotom slowed slightly, giving Ponyta an opening to smash into it with a flame wheel. With that, Shieldon stomped down on top of Rotom's appendages, pinning the ghost down. Rotom tried to shock Shieldon, but the rock-type was barely affected.

"Nice job Shieldon!" Barry shouted. "Now Lucas!"

Lucas already had a second dusk ball in his hands. He threw it right at the back of Rotom's head, and Rotom was forced into the poké ball. The poké ball landed on the ground, rattling thrice. There was an audible _click, _and the poké ball stopped.

"Yes!" Barry shouted. "We did it!"

"I suppose we did," Lucas said, a rare smile appearing on his face. "Rill, will everything be good like this?"

"It's absolutely delightful!" Rill said, spinning around. "You managed to catch Rotom! This game worked out even better than I expected!"

"A game?" Barry said. His face darkened. "_Rill_..."

"Oops!" Rill hummed. Her form rippled, becoming more translucent. "Did I forget to mention that part?"

Barry looked ready to blow, and Lucas didn't look too happy either. "Rill, was this another game?" Lucas said.

Rill looked away, her cheeks becoming rosy. She began to hover in the air. Sebastian appeared beside her, an apologetic look on his face.

"My deepest apologies," he said. "Lady Amaryllis gets a bit too carried away at times. It's part of her temperament to be untruthful for the sake of fun.

He frowned. "Rotom's been wanting to leave the mansion with a trainer for quite some time. With Lady Amaryllis' steep standards, nobody's ever been able to make this far, apart from you two. You'll take good care of Rotom, will you Lucas?"

Lucas nodded numbly. "I'll be sure to do that."

Barry looked ready to pass out. "Can we leave now?"

Amaryllis laughed. Her fellow ghost type pokémon appeared around her, all chuckling as well. "Of course! Do come visit anytime you like. After all, I could use some human company.

Her eyes glowed purple. "Until then, farewell~"

Just like that, the world faded to black.

* * *

**And close!**

**I've gotta say, thanks to everyone reading this! I checked the traffic map a little while back, and this is at over a thousand views! That's a lot! I'm really shook it's at that amount already. I again apologize for the months-long gaps in between chapter updates. Truth be told, I'm working on drafts for another fanfic, as well a couple original works lately, so my attention has been divided. Don't worry though, I do intend to fully finish this fic!**

**As a quick sidenote, I've been cleaning/re-updating up the first few chapters lately, so I apologize if people have been getting notifs for that. I was looking through them a little while ago, and decided to attempt to fix up the wonky pacing of the first few chapters. Again, sorry if you're getting notifs about that!**

**Next Chapter: Dawn vs the Eterna City Gym Leader, Gardenia**

**Until next time!**

**\- Book Mage**


	9. Chapter 9: Thorned Roses

Though it had taken a while to travel to navigate through Eterna Forest, Dawn was happy to say that she and Cheryl were finally at Eterna City. Well, the route outside Eterna City.

Scratching her head, Dawn sighed. "Well, we're out of the forest. It felt like we were in there forever. At least it's over with now, right?"

"I'm glad nothing bad occurred," Cheryl said, nodding in agreement. "I don't intend on returning anytime soon now that Vee has evolved, and I have some of the moss."

"Where are you going to head next?" Dawn asked.

"I'm not sure," Cheryl hummed, her voice vague. "I usually go wherever the wind takes me. I enjoy traveling, looking for the many natural wonders this world contains. Perhaps I'll head east, or even see what other regions hold."

"Sounds interesting," Dawn said. "I'm planning on training for Gardenia. The last thing I want is another close call like Roark."

"That's probably a good plan," Cheryl agreed. "Eterna's gym leader is quite formidable. I hope we meet each other again one day, Dawn. I've quite enjoyed our time together."

"Same here," Dawn said. "Hopefully we see each other around. See you later!"

Cheryl gave her a soft smile, and gave her a delicate wave goodbye before she disappeared into the wild grass. Dawn decided that it'd be best to reach Eterna first to heal, then backtrack for training. With that, she hurried towards the wooden bridge, Drifloon following her close behind.

Once she reached Eterna City, Dawn let out a low whistle. Even from a distance, she could easily see Eterna's most famous feature, the golden statue that depicted the legendary pokémon of Sinnoh. She would like to check it out at some point, but it'd have to wait for now.

Instead, Dawn entered the pokémon Center, which was packed with trainers due to it being the mid-afternoon. Namely, they were surrounding one young woman. The woman had warm brown hair, and was dressed casually in a black long-sleeved shirt, green poncho, beige shorts and boots. No doubt that was the gym leader.

After healing her pokémon, Dawn casually took a seat at one of the glass tables, and waited for the crowd of trainers to slowly dwindle. Soon, Gardenia was alone, and Dawn took that opportunity to approach her.

"Hey, you're Gardenia, right?" Dawn said. "Would it be alright if I battled you sometime?"

Gardenia nodded, and pulled out a beat-up notebook. "Of course trainer! It's good to meet aspiring Champions anytime. Always fun to see people enjoying gyms, am I right?

Unaware of Dawn's blank expression, Gardenia continued. "I'm afraid I'm going to be booked for a bit. Are you fine with the battle being a few days from now?"

"That's fine," Dawn replied. "My name is Dawn Hikari."

"Dawn Hikari," Gardenia repeated, writing the name down in her notebook. "Alright! Thanks! I'll be heading out to scout the Eterna Forest. Trainers are always getting lost, so I often need to guide them.

Gardenia shuddered. "There's... _other _things I need to check out too."

Catching her drift, Dawn bluntly said. "Are you talking about the Old Chateau? Yeah, I heard some screaming from that house earlier. Fun times."

"Screaming?" Gardenia said, going completely still.

"Yeah," Dawn said. "I heard it earlier when traveling with a friend. It was part of some weird legend about a ghost girl and cursed screams, right?"

Gardenia had gone pale. "O-oh! That's right! Ghost girl and cursed screams!

She began to shift from foot to foot. "I've got to go. I look forward to battling you!"

As the gym leader ran off, Dawn shrugged. She glanced at Drifloon. "Seems like someone doesn't like ghosts. To be honest, I'm not the greatest fan of them either."

Drifloon puffed up, clearly offended by the statement. Dawn laughed, patting the ball of fluff on his head. "Allow me to rephrase that. I'm not a fan of ghosts who haunt places and scare the shit out of people. You're not included in that statement."

Exiting the Pokémon Center, she and Drifloon returned back to the area outside of Eterna City. The wild grass was abundant with droves of both pokémon and trainers, making it the perfect habitat for training.

Dawn tapped the buttons on Monferno and Staryu's poké ball, releasing them. She cracked her knuckles. "Alright, let's get training!"

* * *

"Damn, I am so glad we are out of that complete hellhole."

Barry scrubbed his face with his sleeve. He was tired, covered from head to toe in soot from the manor, and most importantly, he had spent the last day in the company of no one but Lucas and a ghost. To say he was ready to check out was an understatement.

At least his killer headache was finally ebbing away.

"It was an experience," Lucas agreed, trying in vain to brush some dirt off the sleeve of his blue coat. "At least we learned some interesting things."

"I could've gone my whole life without knowing human ghosts were real," Barry said. "I'm dead tired, and raring for a nap. You know where the exit is?"

"Unfortunately, no," Lucas said. "I was hoping you did."

"You're supposed to be the smart one out of the two of us!" Barry said. "I thought you knew!"

"Just because I'm smart, doesn't mean I know everything!" Lucas said, his cheeks turning red. "Besides, everyone has their expertise!

Grotle tugged on the hem of his shirt, and Lucas turned around. "Grotle? What is it?"

Grotle tilted his head sideways, gesturing towards a figure in the distance. Lucas sighed with relief. Both he and Barry ran towards the person, who both immediately identified as Gardenia.

"Oh thank goodness," Lucas muttered. "Thank you so much Grotle. Leader Gardenia! Can you please assist us?"

Gardenia gave them a roguish grin when she saw them, and placed a hand on her hip. By her side was a tall, green pokémon, with a head that resembled a white rose. A green mask covered her face, and each of her hands was a bundle of roses.

"Trainers! I suppose you're lost?" she said. "No worries. Roserade and I here will point you the way out."

"Thank you," Lucas said gratefully. "We deeply appreciate it. It has been a very long day."

"I can tell," Gardenia said, looking at the two of them up and down. "Just head east from here, and you can't miss the exit. If you don't mind me asking, what happened to the two of you? It looks like you two rolled in a mud puddle."

"We were in the Old Chateau," Barry said. "It's a very sooty place, you know?"

"The Old Chateau?" Gardenia stuttered, her face growing several shades paler. "Why were you two in there in the first place!?"

"It was wet and dark!" Barry defended. "We weren't going to sleep outside surrounded by wild pokémon ready to pounce!"

"If we were aware of the local legends, we never would've entered," Lucas said. "Rill gave us quite the day in there."

"Rill? As in Amaryllis? The ghost girl?!" Gardenia said, looking ready to pass out. "Now I'm even more glad I never stepped foot in there...

She cleared her throat. "Not that I'm scared of it or anything! I suppose the two of you are trainers? I'm the Gym Leader of Eterna City."

"Just Barry is," Lucas corrected. "I'm simply a catcher."

"Can I battle you sometime?" Barry said.

"Of course," Gardenia replied. "I'll schedule you in for sometime in a couple days."

"Sounds perfect!" Barry shouted. "See ya later! I'm gonna go take a nap."

He took off, racing in the direction of exit. Lucas rubbed his forehead, and nodded at Grotle.

"The two of us should be heading off too," he said. Turning to Gardenia, he bowed. "Thank you Leader Gardenia. I appreciate the help."

"Don't worry about it!" Gardenia chirped.

* * *

After she finished defeating the final trainer on the route, Dawn supposed that they had had enough training for the day. It had taken a bit, but they had defeated every trainer on the route. Dawn and Staryu were heading back into town and when Dawn noticed something she had missed during her first visit due to her rushing for the Pokémon Center.

Tucked away in the corner of the city was a large, bright blue building. It was covered in garish spikes, and it's sleek design clashed with the smaller homes in Eterna. The outside was guarded by small trees.

What troubled Dawn the most was the symbol emblazoned on the gates: a gold, stylized 'G'. Team Galactic. What were they doing here?

While she was curious about their motives here, Dawn couldn't exactly waltz in there. After her battle against Mars, there was no doubt that she was on their list of banned visitors. Though she knew Looker was investigating them after the attack at the Valley Windworks, Dawn couldn't help but be wary.

Maybe Mars was a one-off occurrence. It was an unlikely truth, but Dawn preferred that over the notion that something bigger was happening. Still, she'd keep her eye out for anything suspicious.

As if sensing her trepidation, Staryu tapped Dawn's boot. Dawn looked down, and smiled. "Don't worry about it Staryu. It's likely nothing. We'll just battle Gardenia, and leave afterwards.

"To change the subject, I'm glad you and Monferno are getting along with Drifloon." she continued. "At this rate, Gardenia will be much easier."

Staryu's gem glowed brightly. They then came to a stop, turning upwards. Dawn followed their gaze, finding that they were staring at the statue in the distance.

"Do you want to check it out Staryu?" she asked.

Staryu nodded, and began hopping ahead. Dawn followed them, walking up the small set of stairs leading to the small plateau that held the statue.

Now that she was closer, Dawn examined the sculpture more closely. It depicted a large, draconic pokémon, with six limbs. It had a long, big head decorated with metal, and to sets of steely eyes bored through Dawn. Personally, Dawn thought the statue looked clunky, with the multiple pieces of circular armor and diamond decorations covering it.

Dawn looked down for a description, only to see that there was none. The statue was weathered, but there was a rectangular patch on the stand that was significantly lighter than the rest, as if it had recently been torn off.

"Ah, does the statue of Dia and Pal interest you?"

"Dia and Pal?" Dawn repeated, turning to the source of the voice.

An old man hobbled up the steps, a walking cane in hand. His eyes squinted at the statue, a nostalgic smile on his face.

"All the travelers come asking about the legend. That plate went missing a little while ago, but I remember parts of it." he said.

"What is it?" Dawn asked.

The old man laughed, and scratched his chin. "Let's see... The first part was like this: The creation of Dia, giver of time. In laughter, there are tears and, likewise the same time flows… that is the blessing of Dia.

He squinted, trying to recall the second tale. "I think the next one went: Birth of Pal, creator of parallel dimensions. Alive, yet not alive. Rifts in space. To arrive in the same universe… that is the blessing of Pal."

"Interesting," Dawn said. "If there are two legends, why is there only one pokémon on this statue?"

The old man patted her back. "That my dear, is because a couple centuries ago, Dia and Pal emerged from the peak of Mount Coronet to fight a great enemy. When people looked at them, they saw the two as if they were a single pokémon."

"A single pokémon..." Dawn said. "What did they fight?"

"I'm not sure," the old man said. "If you're interested in it, I recommend checking out Celestic Town. They have more ruins there."

Dawn nodded, turning her gaze back to the statue. During her talk with the old man, someone else had approached during their conversation, and was now examining the statue himself. With a jolt, Dawn realized that she had seen him before.

"Hey!" she said. 'You're the man from the lake! Cyrus, right?"

Cyrus turned, his steely gaze just as cold as the last time she saw him. "Indeed. You're one of Professor Rowan's Pokédex Holders, correct?"

"Oh, uh, yeah," Dawn said, her hand drifting towards her bag. "How'd you know?"

"Professor Rowan and I once knew each other," Cyrus said. "You were drawn to this statue. Understandable. The Legendary pokémon of Time and Space are revered in Sinnoh for their immense power, and role in shaping the universe. It's myth requires more investigation.

He looked down at Staryu. "They would've been drawn to it too. Staryu and Starmie are theorized to be connected to outer space."

"Oh!" Dawn said. "That makes plenty of sense. It's nice meeting you again?"

Cyrus nodded. "If you don't mind, I'd like to examine this statue more closely."

Catching his drift, Dawn nodded quickly. She scuttled back, and Cyrus brushed past. A shiver ran down her spine, and both she and Staryu hurried away. Something about the man's cold presence choked her whenever she was around him. As soon as she was far enough away, Dawn let out a sigh of relief.

"Dawn! It's nice to see you again."

Dawn turned to see Lucas quickly running up to her. He was covered in soot, and Grotle trailed closely behind him.

"Hey Lucas!" Dawn said. "Why are you covered in dirt?"

Lucas looked down at his clothes, and frowned. "It's a very long story. How are you?"

"Good," Dawn said. "Just training for Gardenia. Have you seen Barry around lately?"

"Oh, he's probably taking a nap in the Pokémon Center," Lucas said. "If not, probably out training somewhere. I'd imagine he wants to get Gardenia done as soon as possible."

"Well, I'm glad he's doing fine," Dawn said. "How was your trip through the forest?"

"Barry and I got caught in this haunted chateau together." Lucas replied nonchalantly.

"Haunted chateau- Lucas did you two end up in the _Old Chateau!?_" Dawn yelled.

"To be fair, neither of us were aware it was haunted," Lucas said. "It wasn't that bad, apart from the ghosts."

"The _ghosts!?" _Dawn said, pressing her fingers to her forehead. "You know what, I'm not even going to ask. I'm guessing you two are alright now?"

"We'll be fine," Lucas replied. "Don't worry about it."

"Well, try not to get killed," Dawn grumbled. "I'd rather not be the only Pokédex Holder of Sinnoh."

Lucas laughed dryly. "Very funny. I'll likely be heading back into the forest to capture some more pokémon. Good luck with Gardenia Dawn."

* * *

With a sigh, Dawn set down her pencil. Another day, another few pages of homework to do. Closing her red binder, Dawn glanced out of the window of the Pokémon Center room she had gotten.

Stars patterned the night sky of Eterna, and Dawn recalled what Cyrus had told her earlier about Staryu being connected to outer space. It was an interesting fact, and Dawn wondered if there was anything else about them she didn't know. Space certainly was a fascinating subject.

Dawn shook her head. She couldn't dawdle on the night sky, not when she had other things to do before going to bed. She grabbed her Pokégear from her desk, dialing a number. Buzzing came from the other end before the recipient picked up.

"Dawn! I'm glad you've called me again." Johanna's voice said.

Dawn winced slightly. Her call with her mother after the Windworks Incident hadn't been the most pleasant one, and she had avoided calling for a bit since that one.

"Yeah, I'm back," Dawn replied. "For the good news, I haven't been involved in any more life-threatening situations since the Windworks."

"The good news?" Johanna said, a tinge of amusement in her voice. "Please don't tell me something bad happened again."

"Nothing like that," Dawn said. "Just been training with everyone for Gardenia. She's a grass type gym leader, so Monferno and Drifloon should be able to handle that one between the two of them."

"How are your pokémon?" Johanna asked.

Dawn glanced behind her, where Monferno laid sprawled out on the couch, fast asleep. Meanwhile, Staryu and Drifloon had made themselves at home at the foot of the hotel bed.

"They're sleeping right now," Dawn said. "We were training pretty hard. How has home been?"

"The same as always," Johanna hummed. "A couple of your classmates came over to ask why you and Barry disappeared after Winter Break."

"Really?" Dawn said. "Huh. Anything else exciting coming up?"

"Well, the Grand Festival is coming up soon again," Johanna said. "I'm planning on heading to Hearthrome for that."

"Right, the Grand Festival..." Dawn said, her eyes widening. "Damn, that snuck right up on me. It's coming in less than a week or so, isn't it? I completely forgot about that. I'm sorry that we won't be able to attend this year."

"Oh it's fine Dawn," Johanna replied. "Something has come up, so I wouldn't have been able to spectate anyways. You'll be in Hearthrome soon though, right?"

"I suppose so," Dawn said. "Once Gardenia is dealt with, heading down there is probably my best move."

"Just make it there in due time," Johanna said. "I'd like to see you in person again."

"Okay Mom," Dawn said. "I'll be there.

She yawned. "In the meantime, I should probably get to bed. I've got another long day of training ahead of me coming up tomorrow. See you Mom. Been nice chatting."

With that, she ended the call.

* * *

Dawn entered the Eterna Gym, taking a deep breath. She raised her eyebrows at the sight of the gym puzzle in front of her. The gym was designed like a flower-shaped clock, with two leaves creating the clock hands. In the distance, Dawn could see Gardenia waiting atop a plateau.

"Hey. I'm here for a gym battle." Dawn said, tapping the statue beside the door.

The statue buzzed on, it's eyes glowing blue. "Welcome young trainer. Which battle format would you prefer? Single or double?"

"I'll take single." Dawn replied.

The statue buzzed again before continuing. "Very good. You may begin your challenge. Good luck young trainer."

Dawn quickly discovered upon beginning that in order to progress, she'd need to defeat each of the trainers, who would then activate a switch upon being defeated. The switch would send the hands of the clock spinning so she could eventually reach Gardenia.

She'd followed her main strategy, which involved Monferno using fire to burn down everything in his path. That said, Dawn felt considerably bad about the pile of soot stains she was leaving all over the gym. As such, she decided to lay off the fire, and use Drifloon for the last few battles instead.

With the final trainer defeated and the gym puzzle solved, the path to Gardenia was clear. After healing her pokémon, Dawn shuffled along the clock hands, reaching Gardenia. Upon reaching her, Gardenia smiled, and politely clapped.

"Congratulations on reaching me!" Gardenia said. "You did a brilliant job against my trainers.

She looked off at the numerous soot stains Monferno had left in his fiery wake. "Although, that'll take awhile to clean up...

"Oops," was Dawn's reply. "Sorry about that."

Gardenia shook her head. "Don't worry about it. On the contrary, that gave me a lot of intel on how you battle. But enough chitchat. I, Gym Leader Gardenia of Eterna City, accept your challenge!"

With that, Gardenia snapped a poké ball off her belt, and threw it. A small, pink pokémon flew out. A dark purple cloak of petals covered most of it's body, but Dawn could tell it resembled a Cherubi. Dawn swiftly pulled out her Pokédex, giving it a quick scan.

"Cherrim," she read. "It's a pure grass type, huh? Alright then. Drifloon, use gust on her!"

Drifloon quickly sent a gust of wind spiraling towards Cherrim. Gardenia smiled, and flicked her hand. The wind tore at her leaves, but Cherrim stood her ground. She fired off a single seed at Drifloon, which struck his head. An odd powder spewed out of the speed, covering Drifloon.

"What was that?" Dawn said. "Drifloon use minimize, then gust again!"

Shrinking down to a minuscule size, Drifloon moved even quicker as he shot off another gust. Cherrim held her ground. Glowing leaves rose out of the grass, aiming themselves at Drifloon. Despite his smaller size, all of the leaves hit their mark.

"Magical leaf," Dawn muttered. "Okay. Minimize is useless then. Drifloon, freak Cherrim out, then finish her off!"

Understanding what Dawn meant, Drifloon faded into the shadows cast by the numerous trees lining the interior of Gardenia's gym. As Cherrim looked around, confused, Drifloon suddenly appeared behind her, shrieking loudly. Cherrim flinched, allowing Drifloon to blast her away with gust. This time, she didn't get back up.

"You did an excellent job, Cherrim," Gardenia said, returning her. "Turtwig, you're up next!"

Turtwig took to the field, immediately firing off a round of razor-sharp leaves. Drifloon swiftly dodged them, and shrunk in stature once again. Frowning, Turtwig shuddered, and unleashed a wave of energy. It struck Drifloon, and to Dawn's surprise, he reared back, his balloon smoking.

"Was that hidden power?" Dawn asked.

"Indeed," Gardenia said. "Everyone always comes in with bug or flying types from the forest. It helps to have a trick up my sleeve."

"Ah, I'm guessing that was a rock type one then," Dawn muttered. "Well, I've got a trick or two as well. Payback!"

Spikes of dark energy splintered from Drifloon, spearing Turtwig. Turtwig withdrew into himself, shielding from the attack. Once again, a wave energy shot out from him. Drifloon dodged it this time, and sent a roaring gust towards him.

Turtwig fell onto his back, before rolling back to his feet. He attempted to shoot off another round of razor leaves, but Drifloon was too quick. Spears of darkness once again pierced Turtwig, and Turtwig collapsed onto the ground. Gardenia quickly returned him, tenderly rubbing his poké ball.

"Nice job Drifloon!" Dawn yelled. "Two down, one more to go!"

Gardenia took out her final poké ball, and planted a delicate kiss on it. "It's time for you to join the battle Roserade. I choose you!"

A green, humanoid pokémon took the field. A deep green mask covered her eyes, and her head resembled a white flower. Her two hands were made of bunches of roses, one hand red, one blue.

Before Dawn could shout an order, Roserade jabbed one of her hands into the ground. The earth underneath Drifloon rumbled, and a single, spiked vine burst out, spearing Drifloon's balloon. Drifloon let out a loud squeak, and his body deflated. He shuddered, falling to the ground.

"What the heck was that?!" Dawn said, looking at the ground beneath. "Was that Roserade?!"

Gardenia smiled. "Yep! Just like a little thing the two of us have perfected. Every gym leader's got their ace in the hole, you know?"

"Tch, I see," Dawn muttered. "Aftermath didn't even come into effect either. Was that worry seed from Cherrim earlier?"

"Correct, young trainer." Gardenia laughed.

Dawn unclipped her second poké ball. "Dang it. Monferno, we'll battle together!"

Just as Monferno was about leap forward and attack, a loop of grass wrapped itself around his ankle. As he fell onto the ground, Roserade thrust her hands down. Vines burst out of the ground underneath Monferno, whipping him.

"This isn't going good," Dawn muttered. "First grass knot, then those vines? Torch them Monferno!"

Monferno stood his ground, his palms setting ablaze. The binds on his ankles crumbled to ashes, and Monferno sent a wave of flames spiraling towards Roserade. Roserade jumped away, but she still ended up singed by the attack. With her superior speed, she continued dancing around Monferno's consecutive attacks.

"Prepare yourself Monferno," Dawn warned quietly. "Be on guard. Next time Roserade sends a vine, grab it. You should be able to pull her down and get a clear shot."

Sure enough, Roserade eventually thrust her hands down into the earth, and Monferno tensed. The ground beneath him shook slightly.

"Wait for it..." Dawn muttered. "Now!"

As a spiked thorn pierced out of the grass, Monferno quickly grabbed it with his hand. He winced, but yanked it upwards. Roserade was dragged to the ground, thrashing about.

"Fire time." Dawn said.

With a nod, Monferno held out his other hand. It glowed, and flames burst out, engulfing Roserade in fire. Her body smoking, Roserade collapsed to the ground. Monferno dropped the thorn, wincing as he held his hand, which had rivulets of blood staining it.

"Oof," Dawn said, pulling a super potion of her bag. She ran up to Monferno, spraying the wound quickly. "I'm so sorry about that Monferno. That must've hurt."

Monferno gave her a forgiving smile. He held up the palm of his hand, which was now perfectly mended thanks to the super potion. Meanwhile, Gardenia had returned Roserade, and was approaching the duo.

Gardenia grinned, holding out a badge. "Nice job trainer! You've earned my respect. Here, take the Forest Badge as proof of your victory."

Dawn clipped the badge to her scarf, right next to the first one. "Thanks! Your Roserade gave us a run for the money."

"Like I said, the two of us train a lot," Gardenia said. She pulled out a TM, handing it to Dawn. "Here's the TM for grass knot. I didn't get to use it much during our battle, but I hope you find it useful."

"Thanks again!" Dawn said, shoving the TM into her bag. "I appreciate it."

With a wave goodbye, she and Monferno exited the gym, content to head to the pokémon Center to heal up and rest.

* * *

That night, Dawn woke up to someone yelling. It was muffled, but there was some racket in the streets. Dawn rolled out of her bed, being sure to tiptoe past her sleeping pokémon as she pulled back the thin curtains.

It was dark outside, and Dawn could barely see a thing. Still, the sounds of screaming persisted.

"Children," she muttered. "Don't they know not to make a racket?"

She closed the curtains, and stumbled back into bed.

* * *

The next day, Dawn prepared to make her leave. She stocked up on some potions, and made sure all of her pokémon were ready. With that, she walked towards the south gate.

With her second badge won, Dawn felt much more confident in how her journey was going. Everything was good! Gardenia hadn't been that tough, and now she could simply-

"MISS!"

Dawn froze mid-walk as one of the guards in the south gate stopped her. "What is it?"

The guard crossed his arms, a stern look on his face. "Miss, you require a bicycle in order to travel down the Cycling Road."

"...What?" Dawn said, dumbfounded.

"I _said, _you need a bicycle to travel down the Cycling Road," the guard repeated.

"But... But..." Dawn sputtered. "How the hell does anyone from Eterna get around then?"

"They order bicycles from the bicycle shop_," _the guard said, as if she were an idiot. "No one can enter this route without one."

"Those cost a small fortune!" Dawn yelled.

"Well, most travelers make sure they _have one before they come here_." the guard snapped.

"No one informed me of this!"

"Well then, I guess you'll have to backtrack through Eterna Forest, won't you?"

"Aren't guards supposed to be nice?"

"How about _you_ try wrangling people like you all day, then we'll have a chat about being nice."

Dawn exited the gate, her cheeks flaming red with embarrassment. "There goes my good mood," she muttered. "Maybe there's a rental bicycle I can get from this store."

After getting some directions from one of the locals, Dawn went off in search of the bicycle store. Upon arriving however, she was greeted by another unpleasant surprise. The store was cordoned off with bright yellow police tape. Shattered glass was all over the outside of the store, and the owner was nowhere to be seen.

"What the hell happened?" Dawn said.

One of the nearby civilians scratched their head. "Last night, the bike store owner was dragged off by someone. Woke me up in the dead of the night. The people dragging him had these odd bowl cuts. By the time I made it outside, they were gone."

"Bowl cut?" Dawn said, a sinking feeling in her stomach. "Did they wear these weird space spacesuits?"

The civilian furrowed their brow. "I think so? I could've sworn I saw a yellow 'G' on them or somethi- H-hey! Miss! Where are you going!?"

Dawn was already walking towards the building she had seen earlier, her fists clenched. She knew exactly who was behind this. A quick tap on her poké ball, and Monferno started following quickly behind her.

"Come on Monferno," she said. "It looks like we're battling Team Galactic again."

* * *

**And close!**

**To be honest, I'm not entirely sure how I feel about the chapter. I feel the pacing is a bit off, but I've always been having trouble with this chapter in general. Honestly, same goes for Chapter 10. Apologies for skipping over the training montage, but I'm not really good at writing battles, and I don't want to unnecessarily pad out the chapter, which I think was an issue with some of the earlier chapters of this (which I have since tried to fix). Feel free to tell me if there's any spelling/grammar mistakes in this chapter.**

**To change the subject, I'm shook that next month is the one-year anniversary of Warped Matter. In all honestly, it doesn't feel like it's been nearly a year since I've published this. I'm glad I did it, because I do think my writing has improved as a result. My current goal is get out Chapter 10 on the anniversary, but considering my track record with updating, we'll see how that goes.**

**Until next time!**

**\- Book Mage**


	10. Chapter 10: Commander Jupiter

**And we're back, for the one year anniversary of Warped Matter! My life has changed a LOT within the last year, and it's fun looking back on when I first published the first few chapters of this fic. I've adjusted my outline slightly, and it looks like WM will roughly have around 45 chapter, plus an epilogue. That covers both the main story + some postgame stuff I figured I should probably cover. The last ten chapters may change slightly though, so I might end up going back on this, but we'll see.**

**For the reviews:**

**Katarena: Thanks for your reviews! I really appreciate all your comments on the previous chapters! In all honesty, I can't remember exactly _why _I gave her a Staryu, but I think it was because I originally thought that Starmie were part of the Sinnoh Pokedex for some reason? My memory can be weird at times when it comes to these games, so that was probably it. Then I realized they weren't, and well... it's a long story.**

* * *

Dawn walked towards the Galactic Building with purpose, an amalgamation of clashing emotions bubbling in her. Anger about Team Galactic kidnapping the bike store owner. Worry about what they were planning. An underlying feeling of fear.

Either way, she'd rather not fight alone this time. Pulling out her Pokégear, Dawn dialed a number. She hadn't had much use for it before, with Pokémon Centers having video chats, but now Dawn was glad she packed it.

"Huh? Dawn? What is it?" Barry said as he picked up.

"Barry, are you still in Eterna?" Dawn said, plugging one of her ears. For some reason, there seemed to be a large amount of interference.

"Nope," Barry replied. "Sorry Dawn. I'm currently flying back down to Oreburgh."

"Oka- Flying!?" Dawn said.

Barry laughed weakly, and Dawn realized that the interference she had heard was really the noise of rushing wind.

"Starly evolved?" Barry offered. "She's now strong enough to carry me back down to Oreburgh."

"Makes sense," Dawn muttered. "Maybe I should've caught one."

"Well you'll just need to- OH SHIT!"

There was a clatter, and the dial tone went dead. Dawn looked down at her Pokégear, while Monferno watched with horror. Monferno glanced up at Dawn, worry evident in his eyes.

"He probably dropped his Pokégear," Dawn said. "Wouldn't be the first time it happened. It looks like we'll have to tackle this alone. Again."

Still looking slightly uneasy, Monferno nodded. They soon reached the spiking building, which was still guarded with a line of small trees, now doubt placed there to deter any trespassers. They were no match for Monferno's flames though, and he easily burnt them down. The pair of them walked across the threshold, ready to fight at a moment's notice.

The doors automatically slid open once Dawn got close. She placed a neutral expression on her face, trying her best to act natural as she walked past a set of befuddled grunts with purpose, Monferno in tow. It almost worked, until one of the grunts grabbed her sleeve.

"Miss, I believe you don't have an appointment," the grunt said, his voice carefully measured. "Commander Jupiter asked for no disturbances while she conferences with Rad Rickshaw."

"Conferences, huh?" Dawn said. "I doubt Rad had any say in the matter, considering the state his bike store is in. Where is he?"

She didn't receive an answer. Instead, grunts circled her, tailed by their pokémon.

"Miss, if you don't leave, we'll be forced to remove you from the premises," the grunt said.

"Tch..." Dawn muttered. She reached into her bag, grabbing two poké balls. "I guess we're doing it the hard way then.

She released Staryu and Drifloon. "Everyone, let's go!"

Monferno moved swiftly, cloaking himself in crimson flames before smashing into the nearest Glameow. Yowling at her scorched fur, Glameow clawed at Monferno furiously. Monferno grabbed her by the tail, throwing her into the carnage.

In the epicenter of the chaos, Staryu spun rapidly, sending waves of golden stars spiraling outwards. They redirected if they missed, slicing through anything in their path. Drifloon shrunk down to minuscule size, weaving through enemy pokémon as he shocked them with astonish.

Dawn ducked as a zubat flew for her. It's jaw was wide open, looking for anything to bite with it's pointed fangs. Dawn's eyes darted around the chaotic environment, trying to keep tabs on all three of her pokémon.

"Monferno, mach punch! Staryu, water gun!" Dawn shouted. She squinted. "Drifloon... keep doing whatever you're doing!"

It wasn't easy at all, directing three pokémon at once. Dawn had once heard of triple battles in distant regions, but it was an unorthodox activity within Sinnoh.

Monferno was handling Glameow easily, but that was a given with his typing. Staryu and Drifloon were slowly but surely taking the wave of Zubat's with their combined efforts. It was time to wrap things up.

"Staryu, Drifloon, make a vortex!" she shouted. "Monferno, finish off Glameow!"

Monferno delivered one final punch to Glameow, finishing her off. Meanwhile, Staryu sent a torrent of water, while Drifloon whipped up a vortex that surrounded them. Dawn's dark hair flew up into her face as the wind whipped around her, catching the zubats.

"There we go," Dawn sighed. "That was a lot of work."

A firm hand clamped down on her arm, and Dawn tilted her head back to meet the eyes of a furious grunt. He began dragging her towards the exit.

"You're a menace to society," the grunt said through clenched teeth. "Commander Jupiter said she didn't want anyone coming to see her."

"Let me go!" Dawn said, trying to wrestle free of the grunt's steely grip.

The grunt glared at her, but her expression suddenly shifted. He froze in his tracks, dropping to his knees. His grip on Dawn slackened, and Dawn squirmed out of his arms. She glanced downwards to see who incapacitated her captor.

A short, blue pokémon with orange cheek pouches gave her a wry grin as he raised a glowing purple appendage. The grunt was gripping his side, where the pokémon presumably struck him.

Another grunt ran up, his chest puffed. "Very good Croagunk! You've saved Miss Dawn!"

"Miss... Dawn...?" Dawn mumbled. There was only one person who called her that. "Looker?"

Peeling off his turquoise wig and rubber mask, Looker nodded. "Prodigious Miss Dawn! I must admit, I didn't expect to see you here."

"Same goes for you," she replied. "Are you here for Team Galactic too?"

"Indeed!" Looker replied. "This area is highly suspicious, and I intend to examine every inch of it. What about you?"

"I'm heading up," Dawn said. "I presume I'll have to fight a couple more grunts, as well as the 'Commander Jupiter' they mentioned earlier."

Looker hesitated. "Miss Dawn, it might be best if you stayed behind."

"'Fraid I can't do that," Dawn said. "I've got a score to settle with Team Galactic after the Valley Windworks."

"Very well," Looker sighed. "But I'll be accompanying you. After the events of last time, I think it's for the best."

"It'd be nice to have some help this time," Dawn admitted, recalling her previous plights. She glanced at her pokémon. "Staryu, Drifloon, you two did a great job. Return!"

After placing both of their poké balls back into her bag, Dawn and Looker began their ascent up the metal stairs. Together, they wove through a maze of wooden boxes that blocked their path. Looker stopped every couple minutes, examining the contents within them. Dawn didn't see anything of interest.

Soon, two more grunts attacked them. Monferno tore through them with fiery intent, but Dawn examined Looker's croagunk as he fought. Croagunk moved swiftly, getting behind the opponent's pokémon before delivering a poison jab or drain punch. Both his and Looker's mannerisms implied that they had done this multiple times before.

The third floor was lined with yellow and black monitors, and Dawn had no idea what they did. Looker didn't either. Dawn made sure to give them a good kick as they passed.

As they progressed through the building, more and more grunts attacked. With Monferno beginning to tire, Dawn switched him out for Staryu, and quickly healed him with a super potion. Croagunk on the other hand, didn't seem to be tired at all.

Eventually though, Dawn and Looker found themselves pressed back to a wall, grunts surrounding them. Pandemonium ensued, with pokémon and attacks flying everywhere.

"Tch, there's way too many of them," Dawn muttered. "At this rate, Jupiter will be long gone by the time we reach the top."

"If that's the case, move on without me Dawn!" Looker shouted. "Croagunk and I will handle them!"

Dawn nodded. She shoved past the packs of grunts, Staryu clearing the path ahead of them with their swift. Finally, she sprinted up the final flight of stairs, Staryu still ahead. Staryu came to a dead stop. Dawn almost crashed into them, before they steadied herself.

Rad Rickshaw was kneeling in the corner, his arms bound behind his back with thick rope. Standing beside him was a young woman dressed in a white and black bodysuit. Like the grunts, there was a golden 'G' emblem emblazoned on her chest, and her purple hair was tied up in two buns. Beside her was a large skunk, covered in purple fur, save for a thick cream streak.

Sensing her presence, the skunk turned to Dawn, growling. Noticing her pokémon's sudden trepidation, the woman turned her sharp purple eyes to Dawn.

Dawn nodded. "You must be Commander Jupiter."

"And you must be Dawn." Jupiter replied.

"You know me? I'm flattered." Dawn said.

"With all the tantrums Mars threw after her defeat at the Windworks, it was difficult not to," Jupiter answered. "Her incessant whining over the 'conniving brat' got on my nerves.

She looked down at Rad. "I take great pride in knowing any potential threats. It was simple to access the security footage from the Windworks."

"Interesting. So you like doing your research?" Dawn replied.

"All of us Commanders have strengths. Mine is taking out potential threats to our Leader's cause. Knowledge is key to annihilating an opponent." Jupiter said.

"Knowledge, huh?" Dawn muttered. "You kinda remind me of this guy I know. Only he's not part of some weird evil corporation."

Jupiter raised an eyebrow, but didn't reply to that. Instead, she gestured to Tangela. "I must thank you. By coming here, you've made my work much easier."

Without warning, Tangela dove forwards, constricting Staryu with his teal vines. They tightly wrapped around Staryu's appendages. Staryu's gem flickered bright red in warning, their circulation being cut off.

"Staryu, use swift to cut off the vines!" Dawn shouted.

Staryu sent dozens of stars flying through the room, coming dangerously close to hitting some of the grunts. Some of them managed to slice through the vines, freeing them, while others hit Tangela. Staryu quickly bounced backward.

Jupiter didn't say anything, only tapped her foot on the ground. Tangela sprung to action, diving towards Staryu with his vines drawn once again. Staryu easily flew out of the way this time, making sure to avoid the snares.

As she bobbed away, Dawn noted that a strange powder was being scattered all over the floor. "Be careful Staryu! Try using rapid spin!"

Staryu spun, slicing off more of Tangela's vines. This did nothing to deter him, and Tangela lashed out with his remaining appendages. Dawn bit her tongue, and grabbed Monferno's poké ball.

"Monferno, flame wheel!" she shouted.

Staryu returned to their poké ball while Monferno flew out, already cloaking himself in scarlet flames. He smashed into Tangela, sending him flying into a wall. A majority of his vines were singed or burnt off, and he didn't get up.

"Alright!" Dawn cheered.

Jupiter smiled, switching between pokémon. "You did very good Tangela. Zubat, time to attack!"

"Easy," Dawn said. "Monferno, use flame wheel again!"

Monferno however, didn't follow his orders, instead collapsing to his knees. He was still conscious, but his limbs were locked.

"Ah, so stun spore has taken effect," Jupiter said. "Zubat, use wing attack."

With an easy target, Zubat slashed at Monferno with his webbed wings, leaving gouges on Monferno. Dawn muttered a curse.

Jupiter watched her, hints of a playful smile on her face. "At the Windworks, you tended to use the environment to your advantage. What happens when your pokémon cannot move?"

Dawn bit her lip. "Tch. Monferno, ember!"

Small flames sputtered out of Monferno's mouth, burning the spores surrounding him. They did little to deter Zubat, and he continued to slash at Monferno. Dawn held out a poké ball, returning him in the midst of an attack.

"Switching again," Dawn muttered. "If I can't win like this, I'll just level the playing field. Drifloon, gust!"

Drifloon spun rapidly, blowing all of the remaining spores away from him. With this, he had an opening to shrink in size, and dodge any incoming attacks. He continued to fire off gusts until Zubat was down.

"Nice job Drif-!"

A wave of fire ripped through the air, scorching Drifloon's body. Dawn ducked, barely dodging the flames. Skuntank walked across the field, swiftly slashing at Drifloon. Drifloon kept on rapidly shrinking in an attempt to dodge Skuntank's repeated night slashes, but it was futile.

Dawn grabbed a poké ball. "Tch. Drifloon re-"

Before she could finish her sentence, Skuntank pounced forward, and clawed Drifloon directly in the face. Drifloon fell to the ground.

"Not so fast," Jupiter said. "Constantly switching won't save you anymore."

"Pursuit." Dawn muttered. "Of course. Staryu!"

As Staryu took the field, Dawn grew more and more worried. Aftermath would've dealt some damage to Skuntank, but he was otherwise unharmed. Meanwhile, Staryu was weakened, while Monferno was paralyzed.

"Recover, then swift!" Dawn yelled.

"My, do you always shout your plans?" Jupiter asked. "Skuntank, stop them."

Skuntank pounced, swinging a clawed hand at Staryu. Panicked, Staryu backed up, quickly restoring their health. As Skuntank slashed at them again, they spun, slamming it in the chest. Golden stars spun around the room, all redirecting to strike Skuntank.

It dealt some damage, but not enough. Skuntank continued his advance, prowling towards Staryu with a predatory glare. He lifted his tail, and noxious gas filled the room. Dawn plugged her nose, glancing at Staryu.

"So she's toxic stalling?" Dawn muttered. "Great. As if I needed a timer placed on me."

Her eyes flickered to the ground, where she noted piles of spores still resided. An idea sprung to mind.

"Lure Skuntank over here." Dawn murmured.

Staryu glanced down at the spores, realizing what the plan was. They began to bob backwards, placing distance between them and Skuntank. Unaware of the spores, Skuntank pounced forward, slicing at Staryu with night slash. Deep gouges appeared on Staryu's body, and Dawn bit her tongue.

Staryu was forced to the defensive, healing their wounds while attempting to ward off Skuntank with water gun until they had him right where they wanted him. He stepped right into a pile of spores.

Skuntank's movements quickly grew sluggish, and his eyes drooped as he fell to the ground, soft snores leaving his mouth.

"Hm!?" Jupiter said, clearly surprised.

"Finish him off," Dawn said.

Staryu rose above Skuntank, their red gem glowing angrily as they spun. Both stars and beams of water slammed into Skuntank, sending him crashing into a wall. Cracks formed. Skuntank keeled over.

"Whew." Dawn said. "That was not fun."

Jupiter carefully walked over to Skuntank, caressing his purple fur with her hand. She grabbed an ultra ball, returning him.

"I see..." Jupiter mused. "Using the remaining spores Tangela created to your advantage. I applaud you."

"I don't need your praise," Dawn said tersely.

Internally, Dawn knew that she had needed to buy time. Thankfully, she had. The door behind her swung open, revealing Looker. Behind him, Dawn could see piles of handcuffed grunts, with Croagunk still striking enemy pokémon with his poison jab.

"Looker!" Dawn said. "Took you long enough to get here!"

Jupiter didn't say anything, her eyes flickering to the badge on Looker's trench coat. She raised a hand, and the grunts around her stiffened.

"Commander Jupiter!" Looker shouted. "Under the order of the International Police, you're coming with me!"

Looker dove forward, prepared to apprehend Jupiter when a flash of light filled the air. Blinded, Looker fell to his knees. In front of Jupiter stood a small, bipedal pokémon. It had blue gems for eyes, and both of it's purple hands were outstretched.

"Lucky for me, I always carry an ace in the hole," Jupiter said. "I'm not planning on getting apprehended today. Until next time."

She turned on her heel, calmly making an exit through a hole in the wall. Dawn wanted to try to stop her, but she knew that she was on her final legs. She could only watch powerless and Team Galactic made their leave. Only Rad was left on the floor, still tied up.

Dawn walked over, undoing his ropes. Rad flexed his arms, trying to get circulation back into them. Looker sighed, pulling out a walkie talkie.

"Agent 007. I'll need some backup." he said.

* * *

Interpol members filed through the now-abandoned Galactic Building, looking for any shred of evidence on Team Galactic's nefarious deeds. The search had come up short, and both Rad and Dawn were shooed out of the building.

Rad rubbed at the bandages encircling his arms, which had been chafed raw. "Thank you so much Miss. How can I ever thank you for saving me?"

"Well, I'd like to go down the Cycling Road," Dawn probed. "Unfortunately, I don't own a bike."

Rad's eyes lit up. "No need to worry about that! Just take this voucher and stop by later! I'll have a bike up and ready to go for you!"

He pressed a slip of paper into her hands, and Dawn grinned. "Thanks Rad! I really appreciate it."

She watched as Rad left, and slipped the paper into her coat pocket. Dawn exited the premises soon after. The sun was beginning to set, and Dawn realized that she must've been in the building for hours.

"Miss Dawn!"

Looker ran up to her, shoving a couple papers into his trench coat. "I'm glad to see you. Are you sure you're alright after the fight with Commander Jupiter?"

"I'll be fine," Dawn said. "What about you? Did you find anything you were looking for in that base?"

"I made some important discoveries!" Looker said, puffing out his chest. "Team Galactic will be exposed yet!"

Dawn laughed. As they were walking out of the building, a woman approached them. She was dressed in all black, the clothes clearly high-end, yet comfortable. Blonde hair cascaded down to her waist, and she held an ultra ball tightly in her right hand.

"Miss Shirona!" Looker said, running up to the woman. "You've arrived!"

The woman laughed. "Looker, I've told you many times, just call me Cynthia. How is the situation with Team Galactic?"

"All handled," Looker said. "Dawn and I here managed to rescue Rad Rickshaw."

"Dawn?" Cynthia said, turning her gaze. Her face brightened. "You must be one of Rowan's pokédex Holders!"

"I am." Dawn said awkwardly.

How did so many people know she was a pokédex Holder!? First Cyrus, then Cynthia! How many people did Professor Rowan even know?

"Well, it's very good to meet you." Cynthia said, letting out a good-natured laugh. She held out her hands, and Dawn shook it. "You must be a rather talented trainer. You're doing gyms, no?"

"Not by choice," Dawn muttered, noticing Cynthia's eyes were fixed on the two gym badges attached to her scarf. "But thank you."

"Don't worry about it!" Cynthia laughed. Her expression grew stern. "But back to the main point of the matter. Looker, how is the situation?"

Looker was about to speak when he paused, and glanced at Dawn. Seeing that they likely wanted to speak in private, Dawn coughed.

"I should go," Dawn said, inching away. "It's been a long day. Bye!"

She quickly ran off, leaving Cynthia and Looker in her wake.

Cynthia laughed, "You can drop the bravado now, Looker. That girl, Dawn... She has no idea who I am, does she?"

"I'm afraid not." Looker confirmed.

"I'll meet her again, I'm sure," Cynthia said. "Especially if she's one of Rowan's."

"She's too young," Looker sighed. "I'm all for giving children opportunities, but she's barely sixteen. Especially now that she's managed to swept up in this mess, things are becoming more dangerous."

Cynthia nodded, having grown somber. "I agree. We have some objectives to accomplish, no?"

Together, she and looking turned back to the building, re-entering it. They began to carefully comb through their surroundings carefully, file by file. Other Interpol agents passed by, some nodded respectfully at Cynthia and Looker. Soon enough, Cynthia discovered what they were both looking for.

"There we go," Cynthia said. "They didn't take it with them."

In her hands was a small, grey plate. Looker closed the file cabinets he had been looking through, and gave it a closer look. Cynthia flipped the plate around, revealing an old inscription.

"Do you know how to read that?" Looker said. "It looks like it was written with Unowns."

"No worries," Cynthia said. "I know how to read it. Let see...

She cleared her throat. "'When the universe was created, it's shards became this Plate.' How interesting."

"It's real then?" Looker said.

"It is," Cynthia confirmed. "And it's the fourth out of the sixteen we need. Only twelve more left."

"And they're all scattered," Looker sighed. "To be looking for the Plates in the first place... Sinnoh's situation is becoming dire quickly, isn't it?"

"It doesn't hurt to plan ahead," Cynthia said. "We don't have a clear idea on what Team Galactic is intending on doing. However, if they're doing what they think I am, we'll be needing the Plates."

"The Plates can be incredibly dangerous in the wrong hands," Looker said. "I trust your judgement Cynthia, but this could be risky."

"It's the best we can do at the moment," Cynthia replied. "For now, I'll keep collecting Plates and studying the legends. You will continue to investigate Team Galactic, and keep an eye on the pokédex Holders."

"I'll be sure to do so Miss Cynthia," Looker said. "Keeping a close on Team Galactic is imperative to keeping Sinnoh safe. I'll be sure to keep an eye on their shady deeds, or my name isn't Agent Looker."

"Oh Looker," Cynthia laughed. "You never change."

* * *

Dawn sat down on the floor of her hotel room, pulling back out her map. Monferno and Drifloon were hogging the couch next to her, watching some cartoon on the hotel television. With a content sigh, she crossed out Eterna City, and studied the road she'd need to take next.

Her original plan had been to head to Canalave, but now she wondered if she would be over-exerting Staryu by asking them to surf. Dawn supposed it'd be better to just backtrack later once they were stronger.

Speaking of which...

Reaching over, Dawn gave Staryu a pat on the head. "Thanks for all the help lately Staryu. I know you were disappointed you didn't get to battle Gardenia."

Staryu tapped Dawn's hand with one of their appendages, their red gem flashing brightly. Dawn smiled. "You've been doing a great job. Jupiter was a tough opponent.

She turned her head, looking over at Monferno and Drifloon. "You guys have been doing great as well. Once we hit Hearthrome, we should spend some time checking out all the neat attractions there. Mom used to take Staryu and I there all the time."

Monferno and Drifloon both turned to Dawn, both of their expressions curious. Dawn couldn't but laugh. Come think of it, Monferno had likely never been out of the lab much, and Drifloon formerly lived at the Windoworks.

"There's this huge contest hall where coordinators do pokémon Contests," she explained. " There's this Grand Festival coming up where a bunch of Master Rank Coordinators come and compete.

Dawn scratched her head. "I think they're getting some coordinators from Hoenn this year? I'm not sure. Contests were my Mom's thing. That's only the tip of the iceberg too. There's the Official Sinnoh pokémon Fan Club, Fantina's Gym, Amity Park... a whole lot of things."

Monferno and Drifloon's eyes were positively sparkling at this point, and Staryu's gem flickered, clearly amused by their reactions.

"We'll definitely spend at least a week there," Dawn said. She held up her town map. "Trust me, there's a ton of cool things to see on the eastern side of Sinnoh. We'll head out first thing tomorrow, alright?

All three of her pokémon nodded excitedly, and Dawn grinned. "Alright!"

The bike from Rad worked like a dream. If anyone ever asked Dawn about her opinion on bikes, she'd direct them straight to his store.

Dawn let out a whoop, her feet flying off the pedals as she sped down the Cycling Road. The sharp decline of the hill meant that she only picked up momentum as she went, making it even better. Monferno clung to her shoulders tightly, simultaneously terrified and excited.

Rad's generosity was truly amazing, giving her one of the nicer bikes in the store for her troubles. Now, Dawn was confident she could blaze her way through the rest of the region.

Quickly maneuvering past a couple incoming bikers, Dawn noted that the path was coming to an end. She began to squeeze the brakes, and slowly came to a stop at the end of the hill. She got off, Monferno following close behind. Monferno's legs shook as he got off the bike, but he hopped up and down excitedly.

"I'm glad you enjoyed it Monferno," Dawn laughed. "Who knows, maybe there'll be more hills like those on the eastern side of the region."

The two of them exited the Cycling Road, making their way for the western entrance of Mount Coronet. There weren't many trainers in the way, but Dawn was happy for the experience they gave her and the team.

Once inside Mount Coronet, Dawn rubbed her arms. It was far colder than she thought within the depths of the mountain, and even she felt the cold through her warm winter coat.

Rubbing her numb hands, Dawn tried to recall where the eastern exit to the mountain was. In retrospect, she likely should've examined her map before entering Mount Coronet in the first place. Horror stories about trainers getting lost in the mountain were a dime a dozen back at school.

Things only got worse when Dawn found that there were _a lot_ of zubats living in the mountain. Every step she took alerted dozens of them to her presence. Save for their occasional squeaking though, the mountain was dead silent.

The chilling ambiance of the mountain was beginning to get to Dawn, the eerie silence putting her nerves on edge. She felt like something could come pouncing out at every corner.

Loud footsteps came from the east, and Dawn whipped around, ready to punch any incoming creep. To her surprise, Cyrus came calmly walking down the stairs, his expression stern as always.

"Oh, it's you again!" Dawn said, lowering her fists. "Funny how we keep on running into each other."

"Coincidences occur," Cyrus replied. "All within the natural order of things. Mount Coronet is a place bountiful with trainers.

His expression tightened. "Trainers that lack respect. According to one theory, Mount Coronet was where the Sinnoh region began... In a newly created world, a world where only time flowed and space expanded. But what became of that world?"

"It grew?" Dawn said. Cyrus' philosophical speeches never failed to confuse her, and this time was no exception.

"It became tainted," Cyrus corrected. "Humans are flawed beings. Their weak and incomplete spirits cause strife that stains Sinnoh's once-pristine lands."

"Oh." Dawn said.

"I find this state of affairs to be deplorable." Cyrus finished. "Once again, if you could please move aside."

Dawn did so, and Cyrus disappeared into the darkness of the cave. Dawn clenched her fists.

"Human spirits are weak?" she muttered. "What a load of bullshit. Come on Monferno. Let's shatter some of these rocks."

Still shaken from their encounter with Cyrus, Monferno shattered the rocks in their path, pausing occasionally to swat away a zubat. While he did that, Dawn mulled over the one-sided conversation she had with Cyrus.

"What's going on with Sinnoh these days?" she muttered.

* * *

**Fun Fact: While writing this chapter, I had to search up whether or not Skuntank could use pursuit. I could've sworn they used it in the games, but apparently it's only an egg move? Weird. Like I said earlier, my memories about these games is off at times.**

**I have zero idea when the next chapter is coming! For the last few months or so, I managed to release new ones on a monthly basis, but I'm not sure when the next one will come. I'm oddly a lot more productive during the summers for some reason, so maybe I'll get it done, but who knows.**

**Until next time!**

**\- Book Mage**


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